Former Philippines President Estrada given life sentence for corruption

I figured there would be a fair few people out there on QL interested in this. Would be very interested to hear the opinion of people from the Philippines on this.

Joe.

Estrada given life sentence for corruption

James Sturcke and agencies
Wednesday September 12, 2007
Guardian Unlimited

The former president of the Philippines Joseph Estrada was sentenced to life in prison today after being found guilty of corruption.
Estrada, who was ousted from power in 2001, attacked the verdict of the "kangaroo court", saying the conviction was "politically motivated".

The former action film star was charged with four counts of corruption, involving diversion of funds amounting to about 4b pesos (£42m), Reuters reported. Lawyers said he was found guilty on two counts of receiving payoffs from illegal gambling and taking commissions in the sale of shares to government pension funds.

He was cleared of the other two charges of maintaining a bank account in a false name and of diverting tobacco taxes to his own use.
The verdict - which followed a six-year trial - was televised live. Government fears that a conviction would spark violent protests by Estrada's poor supporters were unfounded.

Estrada was not jailed immediately but ordered to continue living under house arrest in his own villa. He is expected to appeal the conviction.

"I thought the rule of law will prevail over here," he said. "This is really a kangaroo court. This is a political decision."

Estrada rose to stardom in his early 20s, playing tough guys with a soft spot for the needy and weak, roles that endeared him to the many poor people in the Philippines.

After his election, he vowed during his inaugural address in 1998 that his family would not benefit by one cent from his post. He even set up the Sandiganbayan, the anti-corruption court that convicted him.

He was ousted in January 2001 by the country's second "people power" revolt but retained some of his popularity while trying to fend off accusations from prosecutors, who claimed he hid assets and bought mansions and holiday homes for his mistresses.

Estrada had denied the charges and accused the current president, Gloria Arroyo, of masterminding his removal in a conspiracy with leaders of the Roman Catholic church and senior military officers.

He gained credit for time served in detention and it was unclear when he might be eligible for parole, or whether he would spend time in prison, be allowed to continue living under house arrest or even be granted a pardon.

Estrada was also ordered to forfeit a mansion and more than 731m pesos, plus interest, that were deposited into two bank accounts.

"This is the last chance for the state to show that we can do it, that we can charge, prosecute and convict a public official regardless of his stature," the special prosecutor Dennis Villa-Ignacio said. "It shows that our judicial system really works."

Riot police and troops kept hundreds of Estrada supporters away from the Sandiganbayan. Security was also tight around the presidential palace amid worries about a repeat of violent protests that followed Estrada's arrest in April 2001.

"We hope and pray that the rule of law will prevail," a presidential spokesman said. "Meantime, we have a country to run, an economy to grow and a peace to win. We hope that this sad episode in our history will not permanently distract us from this goal."

Two co-defendants - Estrada's son Jinggoy Estrada and the lawyer Eduardo Serapio - were acquitted of all charges during the 10-minute court hearing.

Estrada's friends and family issued a statement calling the case a political vendetta by Ms Arroyo.