The Philippine Supreme Court ousted its chief justice, a critic of the country's authoritarian president, in an unprecedented vote Friday by fellow magistrates that she and hundreds of protesters called unconstitutional and a threat to democracy. Sereno is facing a separate impeachment bid in the House of Representatives, which is dominated by Duterte's allies. Critics warned the court action would set a dangerous precedent and give the Duterte administration a legal weapon to muzzle dissent. Duterte said he had avoided getting involved in efforts to remove Sereno but got fed up. And you have to be out of the Supreme Court," Duterte said in a speech last month, in which he said he requested lawmakers to "go into the impeachment right away.'"

Source: ABC News May 11, 2018 04:52 UTC