Martial Law: The real threat
The Duterte administration claims that they do not want “unlimited martial law” but “unlimited peace,” according to the Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea.
But could it really be possible that a military rule can warrant “unlimited peace” in a nation? This administration would like to think so. For more than 200 days, the military has been ruling the streets of Mindanao because of the recent Maute terror attacks. Yet today, even if the president himself had already liberated the city from the terrorists, the lift of the military rule looks like an implausible move. Could this mean that the end of the Marawi siege was just the beginning for Martial Law? This all began with the president’s decision to implement martial law after armed men attacked the city of Marawi in Lanao del Sur. This is followed by the suspension on the writ of habeas corpus, which would eventually allow warrantless arrests of those who may be connected with the Marawi siege. Such bold actions by the president were not exactly recommended by his security officials, but are still regarded constitutional and reasonable, considering the state of Marawi. According to the 1987 Constitution, Article VII, Section 18 that the president may declare martial law and suspend the writ of habeas corpus “in case of invasion or rebellion, when the public safety requires it.” This, however, is limited to an initial number of 60 days with an extension only plausible if rebellion and public safety is still at stake—a limitation gladly pointed out by the Duterte administration’s critics. Those 60 days, now, look too short when compared to the more than 200 days reign of martial law in Mindanao after the overwhelming approval of lawmakers in the extension of Proclamation 216. And just last Wednesday, December 13, the 17th Congress of the Philippines approved another extension of Martial Law, giving Mindanao the taste of the military rule until the end of 2018. This is less than three months after the deaths of the terrorist leaders Isnilon Hapilon and Omar Maute, and Duterte’s declaration of Marawi’s liberation from the Maute.
Ironically, it does not seem to be liberated from the military rule just yet.
In total defense of the decision, some people say it is not at all bad. After all, it is for the “safety and protection” of Marawi. But at a time when death has already become a norm and the truth is being rejected by most of the constituents, we have to be critical.
For discourse’s sake, indeed, the decision to uphold martial law during the Marawi siege was relatively reasonable given the magnitude of the chaos. However, the president already declared its liberation, so now we question: Is there an urgency to extend martial law in Mindanao?
Apparently, no. In fact, it imposes a potential harm to the citizens of Mindanao.
According to the Duterte administration, the extension was upheld to address the threat of terrorism and rebellion in most parts of Mindanao. Hence, they supposedly want the protection of the citizens.
However, there has been an estimate of over 1,000 unlawful killings in the recent martial law during the Marawi siege. More than that, it has displaced most of the residents in Mindanao.
With the military rule extended until the end of 2018, how many more innocent deaths and unnecessary damage are we going to witness?
Although this is a different situation with the horrific Martial Law during the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos’ rule, there is an iffy similarity that must alarm the whole nation: the military rule becomes a free pass for rights violations.
Alongside the current administration’s war against illegal drugs, the whole nation—not only Mindanao—must already become critical with the consecutive issues and tensions that circulate the country. This is an issue that concerns not only those who are into politics, but everyone that is composed of the nation.
There seems to be a problem-solution mismatch with the extension as well. Instead of looking for ways to reach a compromise or to craft more peace talks with the terrorists, the government choose to go the hard way.
If we analyze the situation, the more they impose military rule, the more that they aggravate the tension. In fact, President Duterte’s failure to arrive at a diplomatic approach was one of the reasons by which forced the terrorist groups to attack.
Now we ask, does the government really achieve its goal to serve and protect the citizens of Mindanao, or are their continuous deplorable decisions the catalyst for everyone’s doom?
