Philippines scores low in citizens’ access to justice

CIVIL conflict and political violence have dragged down the Philippines in the global ranking of economies in terms of providing justice to its citizens, the World Justice Project says.

The Philippines ranked 56th among 66 countries included in the study in providing access to justice to its citizens based on the Rule of Law Index 2011, which attempted to measure the rule of law around the world.

“The index measures how laws are implemented and enforced in practice and affect people’s lives,” said Juan Botero, director of the World Justice Project.

The report, released in Washington, ranked countries on eight points: limited government powers; absence of corruption; order and security; fundamental rights; open government; effective regulatory enforcement; access to civil justice; and effective criminal justice.

Sweden and Norway led the world in most categories, with the Netherlands and Germany following closely, and the US and Canada behind them.

New Zealand led Asia in most areas, followed by Japan. Cambodia and Pakistan obtained the lowest scores in the region.

“The rule of law is essential to the work of all parts of society. It is the key to the promotion of political stability, economic opportunity, social progress and fundamental fairness and equity,” said World Justice Project founder William Neukom.

“Without the rule of law, women and children suffer atrocities, corrupt governments divert public resources needed for public works, and economic growth is stifled,” Neukom said.

The report said the Philippines performed fairly well relative to the lower-middle income countries on most dimensions, although it still required further efforts in many areas.

The Philippines stood out for having reasonably effective checks and balances on the government’s power, where it ranked third out of 16 income-group peers. It was cited for having a vibrant civil society, a free media, and an independent judiciary.

The Philippines outperformed most lower-middle income countries in the area of effective regulatory enforcement, where it ranked 4th out of 16 countries.

“Nonetheless, civil conflict and political violence remain significant challenges (ranking 56th),” the report said of the Philippines.

“Of particular concern are shortcomings in the field of fundamental rights (ranking 40th), particularly in regards to violations against the right to life and security of the person (ranking 57th); police abuses; due process violations; and harsh conditions of correctional facilities; as well as deficiencies in the electoral process.”

The Philippines’ civil court system also got poor scores (ranking 12th out of 13 in the region and 56th globally) because of deficient enforcement mechanisms, corruption among judges and law enforcement officers, and the lengthy duration of cases.

“These factors may explain why few people use the court system to solve disputes,” the report said. –Roderick T. Dela Cruz, Manila Standard Today