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After Sereno ouster, PH judicial independence under threat: UN expert

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<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2018/news/04/10/sereno-duterte-041018.jpg?ext=.jpg"/><figcaption>Ousted Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno and President Rodrigo Duterte. Composite</figcaption></figure></div><h3>Palace: UN official &#x27;misinformed&#x27;</h3>MANILA - The independence of the Philippine judiciary is under threat following the ouster of Maria Lourdes Sereno as chief justice, a United Nations (UN) human rights expert said Friday. Diego García-Sayán, UN Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, expressed concerns over President Rodrigo Duterte&#x27;s statements against Sereno prior to her ouster, noting that these seemed &quot;directly related&quot; to her work for judicial independence.&quot;The unprecedented decision of the Supreme Court of the Philippines seems directly related to the threats made against the Chief Justice in relation to her professional activities in defense of the independence of the judiciary,” García-Sayán said in a statement released in Geneva.He issued the <a href="http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=23163&amp;LangID=E">statement</a> after leaving Manila, where he was on a visit for &quot;academic purposes&quot; earlier this week. The Philippines&#x27; first female top magistrate, Sereno was ousted by her peers at the Supreme Court on May 11 with a vote of 8-6 in an unprecedented grant of a &quot;quo warranto&quot; plea. The ruling nullified her 2012 appointment, citing her failure to file the required Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth to the Judicial and Bar Council when she applied for the post. <ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/05/11/18/supreme-court-ousts-chief-justice-sereno">Supreme Court ousts Chief Justice Sereno</a></li></ul>The ruling came out even as she faced impeachment proceedings at the House of Representatives. She appealed her ouster earlier this week and needs only one justice who had voted for her removal to change the majority vote and overturn the decision that unseated her from office.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/05/30/18/sereno-appeals-ouster-from-supreme-court">Sereno appeals ouster from Supreme Court</a></li></ul>García-Sayán also noted that the Supreme Court decided on Sereno&#x27;s case after Duterte declared himself her &quot;enemy.&quot;Sereno had said Duterte, her staunch critic, may be behind ouster moves against her.This earned the ire of the President who subsequently instructed his allies in Congress to impeach Sereno.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/04/09/18/duterte-to-sereno-i-am-now-your-enemy">Duterte to Sereno: I am now your enemy</a></li></ul>He, however, later denied any involvement in Sereno&#x27;s ouster.“If there is one congresswoman or congressman or a single justice na magsasabing may kinausap ako diyan (who will say I spoke to them), I can guarantee you I will resign,” he told reporters in a chance interview in Malacañang.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/05/16/18/duterte-denies-hand-in-ousting-sereno">Duterte denies hand in ousting Sereno</a></li></ul>García-Sayán said Duterte&#x27;s &quot;derogatory statements and threats&quot; against Sereno &quot;constitute a vicious attack on the independence of the judiciary.&quot;“Not only do they constitute direct intimidation of the Chief Justice; they also appear to have had have a ‘chilling effect’ on other Supreme Court justices, who may have been deterred from asserting their judicial independence and exercising their freedom of expression,” he said.“The use of such derogatory language against the highest-ranking magistrate in the country sends a clear message to all judges of the Philippines: in the so called ‘war on drugs’, you’re either with me or against me,” the UN expert added.García-Sayán called on the Philippine government to adopt concrete measures to &quot;restore&quot; judicial independence. “It is high time to adopt concrete measures to restore judicial independence, which is enshrined in the national constitution as well as in international human rights treaties,” he said.Malacañang, meanwhile, said García-Sayán was &quot;misinformed&quot; on Sereno&#x27;s case and clarified that the President&#x27;s criticism of the ousted magistrate was not an attack on the judiciary.&quot;We reiterate that the President’s dislike of the ousted Chief Justice is not an attack to the judiciary or an affront to judicial independence,&quot; Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in a statement.Roque added that the Palace recognizes separation of powers among the branches of government and noted that it was Sereno&#x27;s peers that removed her from office.&quot;The Supreme Court is an independent branch of the government. The Executive recognizes its independence and respects the separation of powers among the three branches of government,&quot; he said.&quot;It is therefore obvious that former Chief Justice Sereno created her own problems and was removed by her colleagues in the Supreme Court,&quot; he added.

The independence of the Philippine judiciary is under threat following the ouster of Maria Lourdes Sereno as chief justice, a United Nations (UN) human rights expert said Friday.

The independence of the Philippine judiciary is under threat following the ouster of Maria Lourdes Sereno as chief justice, a United Nations (UN) human rights expert said Friday.