(Eagle News) — The Department of the Interior and Local Government on Thursday, Aug. 23, stood by the policemen who arrested three lawyers for alleged obstruction of justice, intimidation, among others, in a Makati bar raid, noting the law enforcers did not violate United Nations rules as claimed by the Integrated Bar of the Philippines.
In a statement, DILG spokesperson and Assistant Secretary Jonathan Malaya said that under the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, lawyers also had the obligation to cooperate with government.
The police said Leni Rocha, Romulo Alarcon and Jan Vincent Soliven were arrested after they “enter(ed) the premises” of the Time in Manila bar, “(took) several pictures and videos of the place of search, and intimi(dated) the members of the searching team without proper and prior coordination.”
The police, who at that time were armed with a search warrant, recovered illegal drugs and drug paraphernalia from the bar in separate instances days earlier.
“As we acknowledge that lawyers owe fidelity to the cause of their clients, they should also bear in mind that as officers of the court, they must observe the rules of procedure and shall not misuse them to defeat the ends of justice,” Malaya said.
According to Malaya, the lawyers crossed the police line without any authorization from the owner of the place, and did not cite who exactly they were representing.
“As a matter of public policy, a client’s identity should not be shrouded in mystery,” he said.
The Makati Prosecutors Office ordered the release of Rocha, Alarcon and Soliven pending further probe into the charges of constructive possession of illegal drugs filed by police against them.
Apart from these charges, the three lawyers face charges for obstruction of justice, resistance and disobedience, and for violation of an ordinance banning the crossing of a police line.
