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Bu-lat-lat (boo-lat-lat) verb: to
search, probe, investigate, inquire; to unearth facts
Vol. V, No. 4 February
27- March 5, 2005 Quezon
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Copyright 2004 Bulatlat bulatlat@gmail.com |
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A People's Lawyer and
Champion
BY CAROL
PAGADUAN-ARAULLO
Streetwise, BusinessWorld
Feb. 18-19, 2005
Posted by Bulatlat
Last Feb. 15, United Nations
ad litem judge Romeo T. Capulong, a most outstanding human rights
lawyer, one of a rare breed of Filipinos who we can all be proud of,
celebrated his 70th birthday. Those who gathered on that
auspicious day represented a truly broad spectrum of political forces from
left to right; from government officials to leaders of cause-oriented
groups and people's organizations; from the well-heeled to the simplest
folk.
People who would ordinarily not mix politically, much less socially, got
together under one roof simply to honor a Filipino who, according to
admirers, epitomizes the "rare combination of brilliance and skill,
fearlessness, and an unwavering commitment to serve the poor and
downtrodden."
There are many adjectives one can use to describe Judge Capulong, to which
there would hardly be a dissenting opinion. He would universally be hailed
as abogadong de campanilla, a lawyer's lawyer. He is highly
respected by both adversaries and allies in the legal profession as well
as in the political arena. He is esteemed and loved by his clients, both
paying and, especially, pro bono.
Judge Capulong is a master of the justice system in this country even if
his attitude and approach to practicing under such a reactionary body of
laws and judicial processes is nothing short of radical, if not heretical.
Still, he has one of the highest batting averages in terms of winning
cases, including the seemingly unwinnable ones.
A sampling of the outstanding cases he and the Public Interest Law Center
(PILC) have handled includes the human rights victims' class suit against
the Marcos dictatorship; the controversial case of Filipina migrant
worker, Flor Contemplacion; the double murder of Kilusang Mayo Uno and
Bayan leader Rolando Olalia and his driver; countless cases of ordinary
folks and alleged leaders of the communist movement arrested and charged
with subversion, rebellion as well as criminal cases; the defense of Jose
Ma. Sison both here and abroad; challenging the constitutionality of the
Visiting Forces Agreement; the Estrada impeachment trial; the defense of
landless farmers in Hacienda Looc and Hacienda Luisita; the defense of
Gen. Raymundo Jarque, the highest ranking military official to defect to
the New People's Army; union struggles in PLDT, Meralco and countless
banks; suits of consumers opposing oil and power price hikes,
privatization of water services and Napocor; urban poor struggles for
decent housing and basic services; the defense of Moros rounded up in
Maharlika Village on charges of terrorist bombings; the double murders of
Eden Marcellana and Eddie Gumanoy, and of Atty. Juvy Magsino and Leima
Fortu, all fearless fighters for human rights in Mindoro Oriental;
building up ironclad cases in corruption scandals such as the scandalously
overpriced Diosdado Macapagal avenue; and the list goes on.
Even when the cases do not prosper in the "Department of Injustice" and in
the "Courts of Lawlessness," Judge Capulong makes sure that in the bar of
public opinion and in terms of the struggle to uphold human rights,
freedom, democracy and social justice, panalo pa rin.
How does he do this? Many bear witness to the fine qualities and sound
approach to his work that are keys to his success as a lawyer, in both the
conventional sense of winning legal battles, and in the unconventional
sense of gaining the moral and political high ground for continuing
struggles and eventual victories.
Judge Capulong has developed an unusually keen political sense honed
through years of rich practice as a trial lawyer and as an outstanding
progressive political leader. He has a vast network of friends, allies,
colleagues and supporters domestically and internationally, from which he
is able to draw the most useful information and assistance. He is a
stickler for a careful and methodical mustering and documentation of the
facts and circumstances; of an assiduous study of the applicable laws; and
of a very deliberate and all-sided analysis of the political and other
relevant factors impinging on each and every case.
But more than these characteristics that one can surely find in any
outstanding law practitioner, there is Judge Capulong's abiding faith in
the masses, the common folk who constitute a significant proportion of his
chosen clientele.
Judge Capulong has taught many a young activist-lawyer as well as grizzled
mass leader the importance of listening to and then organizing the
aggrieved, the victims of human rights violations, to fight for themselves
and help win their own legal and political battles. Time and again he has
pointed out that without the people's movement, there can be no people's
lawyers; that the people's movement is the secret weapon, if not
equalizer, in an existing justice system biased for the exploiter, the
oppressor, the unconscionably rich and the ruthlessly powerful.
On top of all these admirable qualities, Judge Capulong is one fearless
person who won't back off from a good fight, especially when he sees it as
a case of a David versus a Goliath: be it a bully mayor against urban poor
settlers; peasant victims of the government's counter-insurgency
campaigns; or the politically persecuted, like the founding chair of the
Communist Party of the Philippines, Jose Ma. Sison, who has been unjustly
tagged as a "terrorist" by the US and other foreign governments.
With regard to Judge Capulong's incomparable contributions to the forging
of landmark agreements between the Government of the Republic of the
Philippines and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines through a
highly contentious and extremely complicated peace process, let us hear it
from Mr. Luis Jalandoni:
"Every agreement signed in the peace negotiations, since 1992 has
benefited from (Judge Capulong's) sharp legal expertise, unwavering
standpoint for the fundamental interests of the Filipino people and
outstanding negotiating skills. These negotiating skills are marked by
firmness of principle and utmost flexibility in creatively seeking and
finding mutually acceptable formulations."
Judge Capulong likes to admonish young lawyers earning their spurs as
public interest law practitioners to strive to reach "the highest
convergence of professional law practice and service to the people." As
his colleagues at the Philippine Peace Center wrote:
"Indeed, those who know him well cannot help but marvel at his uniqueness,
at how he has managed to steer his legal career -- nay, his entire life --
to such an extraordinary trajectory, toward this 'highest convergence.'"
On the occasion of his 70th birthday, we in the people's
movement salute Romeo T. Capulong, the people's lawyer and champion!
Posted by Bulatlat through the Courtesy of BusinessWorld
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