KARAPATAN Secretary-General Cristina E. Palabay on Monday asked a Muntinlupa court to dismiss contempt charges against her after she denounced former Senator Leila M. de Lima’s six-year imprisonment.
In an 11 page-motion, she said there was nothing contemptuous in what she said, adding that she was just exercising the right to free speech.
“There is no clear and present danger to the administration of justice that would constitute the alleged act as contemptuous,” she said.
A Muntinlupa court cleared Ms. De Lima, one of ex-President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s staunchest critics, of drug trafficking charges for reasonable doubt. The main witness, former Bureau of Corrections chief Rafael Z. Ragos, took back his testimony against her.
The former lawmaker, who was arrested in 2017 and accused of taking drug money months after leading a Senate investigation into Mr. Duterte’s war on drugs, originally faced three charges and was also cleared in another case in 2021.
In a statement, Karapatan said the contempt charges showed the continuing harassment of human rights defenders through trumped-up charges. — John Victor D. Ordonez
