FRANCISCO S. TATAD
MORE than any attempt by President Rodrigo Duterte to sharpen his image as an “independent” head of state, a ruling by Associate Justice Normandie Pizarro of the Court of Appeals’ 12th Division affirming Makati Regional Trial Court Judge Bonifacio Pascua’s earlier denial of a $2 billion indemnity package awarded by a US federal court to alleged Filipino martial law victims, now stands as the latest and most significant assertion of Philippine sovereignty vis-à-vis the United States.