Under Trump’s Executive Order No. 14203, the designation subjects the ICC to US financial sanctions that threaten to restrict its access to American banks, technology, and other essential services. Given the United States’ influence over the global financial system, these restrictions could disrupt the Court’s operations, including investigations, witness protection, and even the delivery of assistance and reparations to victims.

The Philippine Air Force has no problem displaying weapons on a university campus, yet apparently cannot stomach sharp questions protests from students about military operations and civilian casualties. Even the University of Santo Tomas (UST) disciplinary resolution notes that PAF personnel themselves considered the students’ questions valid. What offended them, it seems, was the students’ supposedly rude manner.

The ICC is a consent- and rules-based tribunal that forwards one of the foundations of the international legal order: there must be accountability for grave crimes. It cannot bow down to the wishes of the few, and more so, to the whims of the small-minded.

We welcome President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s grant of an absolute pardon to Mary Jane, a long-awaited act that brings immeasurable relief to her, her family, and all those who stood with her through the years.

As we honor those who resisted the dictatorship, we must dismantle the legal infrastructure that carries its authoritarian habits into the present.

At approximately 6:00 a.m. today, staff at Jollikod, a local eatery in Legazpi City owned by the family of Atty. Bartolome “Bart” Rayco, discovered two bullets ominously left at the entrance. The bullets were bound with black ribbons, one tethered to a piece of stone wrapped in paper and plastic. The paper contained a threatening message that read: “Atty. Bart Rayco MALAPIT KA NA!!” (Atty. Bart Rayco, your end is near!!!). Earlier, witnesses reported seeing unidentified men on a motorcycle stop outside the premises at around 4:00 a.m.

Sa halip na tugunan ang panawagan ng mga PDL na ibalik ang nawawalang pera at buwagin ang Trust Fund, mas hinigpitan pa ang mga PDL na mag-withdraw ng kanilang pera na naka-deposito sa system. Noong nakaraang linggo, isang beses lamang nagpa-withdraw sa Trust Fund. Kahapon, Agosto 27, napilitang magpa-withdraw ang mga empleyado matapos magtipon-tipon sa inner court ang mga PDL.

Fundamental freedoms are especially vital within educational institutions because education is not simply the transmission of knowledge; it is the formation of citizens capable of questioning authority, confronting injustice, and shaping democratic society.

The National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL) and the Public Interest Law Center (PILC) have filed a demand letter with the Correctional Institution for Women (CIW) following reports that persons deprived of liberty (PDLS) were pressured or compelled to sign documents connected with alleged irregularities involving their Trust Fund accounts.