DFA: US to provide funding for improvement of PHL justice system

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Tuesday said the United States (US) will help provide funding for improving the Philippines' justice system, which has been hounded by several controversies recently. In a statement, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario said the US will provide funding assistance for the Philippine Justice Sector Reform Program. However, the DFA did not disclose the amount that the Philippine government will receive from the US government. In the agreement, the US committed financial support for improving the Philippines' justice system, which lacks funds for for the repair of courthouses and upgrading the courts' electronic equipment and salaries of magistrates. Del Rosario said the US also wants to curb or eliminate the use of illegal drugs in the Philippines through the Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement Program. "The [program] is another headway in Philippine-United States relations which affirms the Aquino administration's resolve to promote the rule of law and address the scourge of illegal narcotics trade and trafficking," according to him. He said the program will enhance the Philippines' capability to "improve prosecutorial training, improve the operation of the criminal justice system, strengthen police-prosecutor cooperation, and support better use of existing criminal procedure tools." The program — subject to renewal with the concurrence of the Philippines and the US — will be implemented for a stretch of 12 months. United States Ambassador to the Philippines Harry Thomas said the Philippine government's "efforts in law enforcement and narcotics control deserve strong support, especially since overseas Filipino workers have become prey to perpetrators of the illegal drugs trade." Three Filipinos were executed in China last month for transporting illegal drugs there. – JE, GMA News