President Gloria Arroyo (Mindanao Examiner Photo) MANILA (Mindanao Examiner / 08 Feb) - Philippine leader Gloria Arroyo on Thursday hailed the passage of the anti-terror bill by the Senate, saying, it will boost the government's all-out war against terror.
"I acknowledge the Senate for the passage of the anti-terror bill. All peace-loving Filipinos are looking forward for its quick approval at the bicameral level and I will wait for it, pen in hand, at my desk," Arroyo said in a statement.
Arroyo said the passage of the bill is an institutional landmark of the 13th Congress. She said the government’s all-out war against terror would now have legal teeth and would make the Philippines a stronger player in the world in the fight against terrorism.
"Now that we have more legal teeth in this fight, we shall continue to sharpen the intelligence and operational capabilities of the Armed Forces and Police, modernize and further professionalize them, and broaden the domestic and international alliance that will give us the edge to win and prevail," she said.
Arroyo said an anti-terror law would stand alongside the ASEAN Anti-Terror agreement signed by the leaders of the 10-member regional grouping at the end of the 12th ASEAN Summit held in Cebu last month.
"A Philippine Anti-Terror Law will stand beside the ASEAN anti-terrorism accord to consolidate the common fight across borders and help bring forth greater security, more vibrant trade and a stronger hand to defeat poverty throughout the region," she said.
She said it would bring together the common fight of member-countries against terror to achieve regional security and prosperity and eventually eradicate poverty.
Arroyo said: "The passage of the bill into law is timely as the world looks upon the Philippines as a strong global player in the fight against terror," with the inevitable defeat of the homegrown terror group Abu Sayyaf, due to the government’s all-out war against them.
Legislators passed Senate Bill 2137, renamed the Human Security Act of 2007, after ensuring enough safeguards are in place to prevent it from being used to abuse human rights.
In the southern Philippines, security officials also praised the passage of the anti-terror bill.
"That is what we need. An anti-terror bill that will address our legal offensive against terrorists," the commander of military forces in Mindanao, Lt. Gen. Eugenio Cedo, told the Mindanao Examiner.
Under the bill, a terror suspect can be held for 3 days without court orders or formal charges. (Mindanao Examiner)
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