Another retired judge returns IBP award because of Duterte
In an “expression of disappointment and disgust,” retired Judge Meinrado Paredes returned the Golden Pillar of Law Award conferred to him by the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) after learning that former President Rodrigo Duterte received the same recognition.
In a letter addressed to IBP national president Atty. Allan Panolong, Paredes said that while he recognized the honor in being given the award, he decided to return the plaque as he “did not believe” that Duterte upheld the ideals of justice, integrity and the rule of law.
“This is not a protest but an expression of disappointment and disgust. I am doing this in solidarity with the victims and their relatives of human rights violations,” said Paredes.
Paredes is among the many lawyers who criticized the IBP’s decision to give Duterte the award. An organization of human rights lawyers previously tagged the move as a mockery to thousands of individuals who were killed in the drug war and lost a chance to defend their names in court.
The IBP Davao chapter, however, defended the award, maintaining that Duterte met the qualifications to be recognized, even reminding lawyers of their duty to “rise above biases and to uphold this fundamental precept of our justice system, that judgment must rest on evidence and final conviction, not mere perception.”
But in his letter, Paredes described the invocation of the presumption of innocence as the “favorite refuge of scoundrels,” likening Duterte to corrupt lawmakers, Department of Public Works and Highways officials, contractors and plunderers.
The seasoned judge reminded the IBP that Duterte’s regime as President was “characterized by the rule of the gun, not of law,” a time where extrajudicial killings and human rights violations ran rampant.
“He has blood debts. There is no rule of law if human beings are killed without due process,” Paredes said.
“There is no justice and due process if drug suspects are killed like stray dogs in the streets. He is the principal accused of crimes against humanity before the International Criminal Court (ICC),” he added.
Justice and integrity
Paredes then expressed hope that his colleagues would understand his decision and personal stance in returning the award.
He also reminisced about his time serving as a Regional Trial Court judge during the incumbency of Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, where he and Court of Appeals Ret. Justice Gabriel Ingles both declined monthly allowance from the Cebu Provincial Government—a testament to their commitment to uphold the ideals of justice and integrity.
Duterte is currently in the custody of the ICC for crimes against humanity he allegedly committed during his administration’s bloody war against drugs.
Official government records show that Duterte’s campaign against illegal drugs, dubbed as Oplan Tokhang, left at least 6,000 people dead—with human rights groups estimating the total deaths to be over 30,000.
