Women workers’ group Kilusan ng Manggagawang Kababaihan (KMK) joined human rights groups and progressive organizations in a protest action at the Supreme Court to vehemently oppose to the candidacy of Quezon City Regional Trial Court Judge Cecilyn Burgos-Villavert in various judicial offices, including as Associate Justice of the Court of Appeals (CA), Associate Justice of the Sandiganbayan (SB), and Special Prosecutor of the Ombudsman.

“We urge our justices to heed the appeals of activists and their families, who have suffered under Judge Villavert’s warrant factory which effectively granted our state forces a license to arrest and detain individuals over fabricated charges. Given her questionable track record, we believe that should the high court promote Judge Villavert into her sought after positions, she will certainly abuse her powers to further instill fear and terror among human rights defenders and peace advocates,” said Jacquiline Ruiz, KMK’s Spokesperson.

According to the group, the controversial judge has been complicit with former President Rodrigo Duterte and state forces in the commission of grave human rights violations for issuing numerous warrants which led to the illegal arrests and detention of around 76 activists from 2018 to 2020, including trade union organizers.

Citing the report jointly submitted by Philippine trade unions and workers groups to the International Labor Organization – High Level Tripartite Mission (ILO-HLTM) held in the country last year, Ruiz highlighted that Villavert have issued warrants against trade union leaders including the six (6) labor organizers who were arrested in simultaneous raids in Manila last December 10, 2020. Ruiz also shared that Villavert issued a warrant against Cora Agovida, an officer of GABRIELA and a fellow organizer of women in the informal economy, as well as her husband Michael Bartolome, an urban poor organizer in October 2019.

“We also share the view that if Villavert is granted power over trials relating to government officials’ cases of graft and corruption, given Villavert’s tainted record, she will most certainly only serve the interests of the president, whose family and person are presently hounded by issues related to graft, corruption, and human rights violations. It is our firm belief that Villavert would present serious danger in her candidate positions. Villavert should NOT be granted any such powers, whether in the Court of Appeals, Sandiganbayan, Ombudsman, or elsewhere,” concluded Ruiz.