MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine justice secretary has invalidated an immigration expulsion order for an Australian nun who irked the Philippine president by joining political rallies but she still faces possible deportation.
Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said Monday that the Bureau of Immigration's forfeiture of Sister Patricia Fox's missionary visa was "without legal basis" because the agency did not have that power. Guevarra, however, ordered the bureau to continue deportation proceedings in relation to another alleged offense.
Immigration Bureau chief Jaime Morente issued a final decision last month for Fox to leave the Philippines in 30 days after she allegedly violated the terms of her visa, prompting her lawyers to appeal to the Department of Justice.
President Rodrigo Duterte has been hypersensitive to criticism, especially about his deadly crackdown on illegal drugs.
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