Former Philippine senator Leila de Lima, who spent six years in detention for criticizing President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs, was acquitted on Monday of charges.
Ms. de Lima was a senator at the time Detained in 2017 She was accused of accepting bribes from drug dealers. A bloody war that left thousands dead.
Her detention sends a stark warning to those who dare to question Duterte’s war on drugs, which began soon after he took office in 2016.
Ms. de Lima has always maintained that the allegations are false and intended to silence her. bail She was acquitted of two of the three charges she had been charged with after five witnesses recanted their testimony in the case.
On Monday, a Muntinlupa City court acquitted her of the last charge. Ms. de Lima filed a motion saying prosecutors did not have enough evidence to convict her, and the court ruled that prosecutors had failed to prove her guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
As she left the court after the verdict, she was cheered by supporters, many of whom wore yellow, the colour of the Liberal Party she has represented in parliament since 2015.
“Today I am vindicated,” Ms. de Lima said in an interview. “But there will be full vindication and true justice only when those who persecuted me are held accountable for the wrongs they have done to me and my reputation.”
This is a developing story.
