Philippines opposition seeks to impeach president

13/10/2008 17:17:27

Opposition groups in the Philippines have filed an impeachment complaint against President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, but admit they do not have the numbers in Congress to make it stick.

The complaint accuses Mrs Arroyo of corruption, extra-judicial killings, torture and illegal arrests.

One of the complainants is a woman whose activist son has been missing for 18 months and is widely suspected to have been abducted by security forces.

With her domination of the House of Representatives, Mrs Arroyo has been able to fend off three impeachment complaints in the past three years.

Mrs Arroyo's term ends in 2010 and many congressmen would rather conserve their energies for the election campaign rather than try and impeach her now.

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