Judges in the Philippines have started applying for loans to buy guns after the Supreme Court approved a resolution that makes it easier for members of the court to acquire firearms. After months of consultation and following a series of killings involving judges and lawyers, the Supreme Court recently approved a gun acquisition program wherein judges can apply for an interest-free loan amounting to 50,000 pesos ($1,250) for the purchase of firearms. Deputy Court Administrator Reuben dela Cruz said judges “want to be secured as they perform their jobs” amid the continuing attacks against their colleagues. “We don't want to be blamed for not doing anything. They have become sitting ducks against determined killers. We decided that arming them would be a deterrent against the killings,” Dela Cruz said. Fifteen judges have so far been shot dead by assassins since 1999. The latest victim was Calbayog, Samar Regional Trial Court Judge Roberto Navidad, who was shot dead last Jan. 14 as he was about to board his car in Calbayog City. “We don't want to be blamed” for the deaths of more judges, Dela Cruz said when asked on the program's rationale. The move was also meant to impress upon criminals that the Supreme Court is determined to stop them, he said. The Supreme Court's decision to arm judges has drawn mixed reaction from the public, with many saying that it won't actually deter hired killers from executing the orders they received from people who have the money to pay them. A senior judge, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the best way to protect judges “is not to arm them since it only creates a false sense of security.” __
