The police on Sunday arrested three persons for wearing balaclava at the Bahain ang Luneta 2.0 protests for supposed violation of a City of Manila ordinance, raising concerns however about the true intent of the local measure.
The Philippine National Police said the three men were accosted and brought to a nearby police station for violating City Ordinance Number 9134, but were later released without charges.
The men, hooded with balaclava and wearing military-style vests with “PRESS” markings, introduced themselves as content producers for an independent media organization. Their identities were not made public.
The ordinance prohibiting face masks, helmets and other face covers was passed last November 3 to prevent “criminals” from concealing their identities and to make it easier to identify them in public establishments.
The three men’s apprehension yesterday was the first publicly-known incident regarding the ordinance.
Based on experience…
The Moro-Christian Peoples’ Alliance (MCPA) raised concerns against the measure, fearing its implementation “might extend to Moro women who wear the mastura or hijab” in the city.
“We raise this concern because some police officers might abuse their authority and include mastura-wearing Moro women in its enforcement. We have mastura-wearing Moro women who frequently join rallies,” MCPA secretary general Amirah Lidasan told Kodao.
MCPA said yesterday’s arrest may be a indication of how the police would use the ordinance against the Moro people of the city.
“We express this worry based on our experience during the illegal arrests made on September 21, where Moro youth were arrested and tortured simply for being bystanders or for living near the area,” Lidasan said.
There is a Muslim center near the Ayala Bridge and there are Moro construction workers living near the Mendiola Bridge, she said.
Lidasan added that the ordinance also may be used to intimidate and discourage Moro people from anti-corruption activities in Manila, a predominantly Muslim kingdom before Spanish colonization.
A leading human rights lawyer also said the ordinance will adversely affect ordinary citizens as law enforcers “might use it as a tool to harass, intimidate, or potentially enable corruption.”
National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL) president Atty. Ephraim B. Cortez said in an earlier Facebook post the ordinance cannot serve as grounds for warrant-less search and arrest, as what the three men underwent Sunday.
He added that “stop and frisk” searches cannot be justified based on mere hunches as they must be rooted in “reasonable suspicion.”
Cortez urged the police to remember jurisprudence on lawful searches and arrests when enforcing the ordinance to “ensure the rights of individuals accused of violations are upheld and protected.” # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
