By Orlando P. Carvajal
THE significance of upholding the rule of law is best illustrated by Thomas More’s now famous reply to William Roper who said he’d cut down every law (of England) to get after the Devil: “Oh? And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned round on you – where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat?” Thomas concluded to Roper that “Yes, I’d give the Devil the benefit of the law, for my own safety’s sake.”
Because, therefore, even the Devil must be given the benefit of the law, President Duterte, for his own safety’s sake, should wage the war against drugs (the Devil?) in as legal a manner as possible. His supporters should also refrain from shooting down for whatever good or bad reason, any and all attempts at probing and proving government complicity in the killings that inevitably happen in the course of the war against drugs.
But, precisely for the exact same reason of upholding the rule of law, anti-Duterte personalities, including human rights activists, to whom rightly or wrongly Duterte is the Devil, should give him the benefit of the law which presumes him to be innocent of extra-judicial killings until proven guilty.
If it is wrong to oppose and condemn investigations into human rights violations on the grounds that the probers are more concerned with the human rights of the victimizers than those of the victims (remember, even the Devil must be given the benefit of the law), it is equally wrong to presume Duterte to be the guilty Devil (and tell the whole world so) and deny him the benefit of the law that presumes him to be innocent unless proven guilty.
My suggestion is that both sides try to agree on that the war against drugs is the right war to wage. It is closely linked to and almost practically identical with the war against corruption which has been the bane of this hapless nation.
Then what both sides can do next is exert efforts (which include letting investigations run their course in the most unbiased way possible) to ensure that the war is waged in accordance with the rule of law. That means giving the Devil the benefit of the law whoever each side thinks is their Devil, Duterte and the police or drug lords and their protectors in government.
Having said that, I must say I was terribly disappointed that Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella said he could not comment on whether or not the circumstances of Mayor Rolando Espinosa’s death is suspicious. How much more suspicious can it be that a prisoner is allegedly killed when resisting arrest while in his prison cell?
But there you go. While the investigation is ongoing, the rule of law must be respected that stipulates that both mayor and his killers are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
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