Release Senator de Lima as she enters her sixth year behind bars

Today marks the sixth year of Philippine Senator Leila de Lima’s unjust imprisonment.

Senator De Lima, an outspoken critic and scrutinizer of abuses committed under former Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte’s “war on drugs”, was arrested in February 2017 on false drug charges and has since been held in pre-trial detention.

Last year, a third key witness in the case recanted his testimony against Senator de Lima, claiming he was coerced and threatened into testifying. Several judges assigned to the Senator’s cases also recused themselves or opted for early retirement. Despite these developments, two of the three charges against Senator de Lima are still not dropped.

Liberal International (LI) and the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats (CALD) implore Philippines Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla to expedite and complete a thorough review of the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) remaining charges against Senator de Lima, and to immediately drop them should the review show insufficient grounds for these charges.

LI and CALD also welcome the Secretary’s recent statement saying that the DOJ will not oppose a petition for bail or for habeas corpus by Senator de Lima’s camp.

LI and CALD further urge President Bongbong Marcos to ensure that rule of law is respected within the Department of Justice and Senator de Lima’s case, and that her human rights are fully upheld.

LI and CALD note with satisfaction that the ICC’s three-judge panel on January 26 authorised the court’s prosecutor to resume the investigation of extrajudicial killings under the Duterte regime, in which thousands were killed under the pretext of a “war on drugs.” We urge the country to cooperate with the investigation.

Leila de Lima is a Filipino lawyer, human rights activist, and politician. She has served as the Chair of the Philippine Commission on Human Rights and the Philippines Secretary of Justice. She is the recipient of Liberal International’s 2018 Prize for Freedom.