Groups claiming to be lumad supporters on Wednesday filed a petition before the Supreme Court to nullify the implementation of President Duterte’s Proclamation 216 that extended the imposition of martial law and the suspension of the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus in Mindanao until the end of the year.
In a 13-page petition, the petitioners, through the Free legal Assistance Group led by human-rights lawyer Jose Manuel Diokno, also asked the Court to issue a temporary restraining order not only to enjoin the implementation of Proclamation 216 but also to direct the police and the military to cease and desist from continuing with its alleged militarization of areas where lumad schools are, the forcible closure of lumad schools and the harassment of teachers and students.
They claimed that the extension of martial law and the suspension of the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus have resulted to the continued impunity against lumad schools.
The petitioners also asked the Court to review the sufficiency of the factual basis for the extension of martial law and eventually declare the same as unconstitutional.