Lawmakers to vote on Duterte bid for longer martial rule

Agence France-Presse

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Lawmakers to vote on Duterte bid for longer martial rule

Lito Boras

(2ND UPDATE) President Rodrigo Duterte is widely expected to win approval for martial law in Mindanao until the end of the year

MANILA, Philippines (2nd UPDATE) – The Philippine Congress sits in a special session on Saturday, July 22, to vote on President Rodrigo Duterte’s bid for longer military rule over the southern third of the country in a bid to defeat Islamist gunmen. (WATCH: Congress joint session on martial law in Mindanao)

Duterte is widely expected to win approval for martial law in the region until the end of the year, with troops having failed to wrest back the southern city of Marawi following two months of fighting.

The military said only about 60 Islamic State group-inspired gunmen are left in a 49-hectare (121-acre) area of Marawi, but Duterte said he needed martial law powers to rebuild the city and ensure the war did not spread elsewhere.

“I cannot afford to be complacent,” Duterte told reporters Friday, July 21, adding the military will be conducting further “mopping up operations” even after they recapture Marawi.

“If there is a spillage, it will not be as bad if you have this stopgap,” he added. (READ: Duterte wants martial law extension over ‘evolving’ urban warfare)

Duterte imposed a 60-day martial rule – the maximum period allowed by the constitution – over the Mindanao region on May 23 within hours of the gunmen beginning their rampage.

On Monday, he asked Congress to extend it until the end of the year, along with the continued suspension of a constitutional safeguard against warrantless arrests.

A slide presentation accompanying Duterte’s request, seen by Agence France-Presse, compared the Marawi crisis to the IS takeover of the Iraqi city of Mosul.

Most of the militants’ leaders remain at large, it said, while about 90 of the gunmen have slipped past security cordons and can link up with other armed groups in the region to mount similar widescale attacks.

Joint session rules

As mandated by the 1987 Constitution, Congress holds a joint vote on Duterte’s request for an extension of martial law.

The Senate and House members will vote separately first, then both chambers’ votes will be consolidated. With 24 senators and 291 lawmakers, 158 votes are needed to arrive at a majority decision.

House Majority Leader Rodolfo Fariñas is expected to sponsor the motion for the House while Senator Gregorio Honasan II will sponsor the motion for the Senate.

Under the rules, every legislator will be given 5 minutes to interpellate the sponsors. When the voting comes,  the lawmakers will only be given a minute each to explain their vote.

While discussing the rules on interpellation on Saturday, both chambers agreed to allow only 4 minutes per interpellation.

Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III expects the joint session on Saturday to end by 4 pm.

‘Nationwide martial law’

Marawi itself could now become a magnet for foreign fighters in Iraq and Syria, according to Duterte’s presentation to lawmakers. (READ: Marawi inspired, strengthened pro-ISIS fighters in region – report)

Martial law allows the military to establish control with measures such as curfews, checkpoints and gun controls in a country where civilians are authorized to keep licensed firearms in their homes.

However, any extension of martial law must be approved by Congress.

The subject remains sensitive in the Philippines decades after the late deposed dictator Ferdinand Marcos put the country under military rule for part of his 20-year term.

Thousands of critics, political opponents as well as communist rebels were killed, detained, or arrested during the period, according to historians.

“I am amenable to it,” House justice committee chairman Reynaldo Umali, a key Duterte ally, told ABS-CBN on Friday.

Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez has said previously he sees no roadblock to its swift approval by both chambers of Congress.

Duterte had already beaten back a Supreme Court petition to declare martial law in Mindanao illegal.

But opposition politicians have criticized Duterte’s proposal for a martial law extension, with some alleging it is part of a Duterte plot to eventually bring the country under a military-backed dictatorship.

“Once he feels that there is not enough opposition to a nationwide martial law declaration, he will go for it,” Senator Antonio Trillanes told AFP on Tuesday.

After this he could declare a revolutionary government to allow him to stay in office beyond his 6-year electoral term in mid-2022, Trillanes said.

Duterte, 72, insists he has no plan to stay in office beyond his term. – with reports from Mara Cepeda/Rappler.com

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