MANILA, Philippines—President Aquino has been advised by his justice officials not to send all 116 witnesses being summoned to Hong Kong for an inquest into the botched police rescue that led to the death of eight Hong Kong tourists and their hostage taker.
Likewise, the President was advised to “insist” that the Hong Kong investigation in February be conducted within the framework of the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty firmed up between the Philippines and Hong Kong.
Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said Monday she was giving this advice to President Aquino in a memorandum she was submitting to the Chief Executive on Tuesday.
De Lima spoke to reporters in Malacañang after attending President Aquino’s signing of the P1.645-trillion national budget.
She said that Mr. Aquino was “open” to sending a delegation to Hong Kong but added that she was advising him not to send all 116 witnesses to the inquest.
“Why do they need all of them?” she asked.
She said Hong Kong authorities apparently used as basis all the names of the witnesses mentioned in the report of the Incident Investigation and Review Committee (IIRC).
She also said she was advising the President “to insist the application of the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty” as she stressed this was “the only way we can duly protect all of those we will send to testify before the coroner’s inquest proceedings.”
The justice secretary also stressed there was a need to clarify the “exact objective and scope of the investigation.”
“We have to make sure: will it lead to prosecution? Well, we don’t think so. But we want that it comes from them, the assurance comes from the Hong Kong authorities,” De Lima also said.
The summons sent to Filipino authorities by Hong Kong authorities came months after the government completed its own investigation of the bus hostage incident on August 23.
The government filed administrative charges against certain police officials and even Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim for the botched police rescue—a move that some critics slammed for being too soft compared to the recommendations of the IIRC led by De Lima.
