Courtroom conduct must be guided by rules, respect, and proper decorum rather than an expectation that opposing sides will be gentle with one another, Akbayan Party-list Rep. Chel Diokno said Thursday.
Diokno, a veteran litigator, made the statement after defense lawyers for Vice President Sara Z. Duterte appealed for kindness during the Senate impeachment trial, following a heated exchange between prosecution counsel Atty. Lorna Kapunan and defense counsel Atty. Kristine Ferrer that required Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero’s intervention.
“Ako ay litigator for more than 30 years na akong pumupunta sa court. Halos lahat siguro ng court ay napuntahan ko,” Diokno said in a press briefing, emphasizing that litigants cannot demand gentle treatment from adversaries.
“Wala namang expectation ang sinumang kabahagi ng isang court case to kindness,” Diokno said. “Of course, we all want kindness as a human virtue, but as far as court rules are concerned, ang importante ay masunod iyong court decorum and proper court behavior.”
Diokno stressed that professional respect keeps adversarial proceedings orderly when disagreements intensify. “Ang pinaka-essence ng court decorum talaga ay respeto, respeto sa judge, respeto sa kalaban,” he said, warning against raising voices or cutting off witnesses.
“Ang kailangan lang, matibay at solid ang argumento mo. Hindi naman pataasan ng boses ang court hearing,” Diokno added. “We should never interrupt a witness while they are speaking. Kung hindi tama iyong sinabi ng witness at dapat i-strike from the record, then I will wait for the witness to finish before I ask that the statement be removed from the record.”
Warning that the televised proceedings set an example for law students, Diokno said the prosecution will continue demanding strict adherence to procedure, “that is what we are hoping and insisting will happen in this impeachment case and we will always be ready to call out anyone who is not following proper court decorum.”