Sr. Fox to leave PH amid legal battle
The Bureau of Immigration has denied the visa extension of Sr. Patria Cox and required her to leave on November 3.
By Roy Lagarde
October 31, 2018
Manila, Philippines
Australian missionary Sr. Patricia Fox is leaving the Philippines after six months of “arduous” legal battle with the country’s Bureau of Immigration, her lawyers said Wednesday.
In a statement, her counsels from the National Union of People’s Lawyers said the BI required Fox to leave on November 3 after it denied her plea to extend her temporary visitor’s visa.
“Under the circumstances, she is compelled to leave under strong protest,” said Atty. Katherine Panguban of NUPL.
“Sr. Fox will leave the Philippines with a clear conscience that she has done nothing wrong and illegal during her 27 years of stay in the country,” she said.
But Panguban said that Fox’s fight is not yet over as they will face the deportation against the 71-year-old nun which is still pending before the Justice department.
“We shall continue to defend the rights of peoples and hold responsible repressive governments in all fora,” she said.
The BI on Oct. 26 said it has downgraded Fox’s missionary visa to a temporary visitor’s visa that only has a 59-day validity.
The bureau earlier denied the nun’s appeal to renew her missionary visa which expired on Sept. 5.
It said that Fox had “failed to raise any new and substantial arguments” as to why her missionary visa should be extended.
The superior of the Notre Dame de Sion in the Philippines was earlier arrested and ordered deported for allegedly joining in partisan political activities.
Fox stressed she has no choice but to leave Manila for her home country on Saturday but revealed she that intends to return to the Philippines next year.
“If I’m not in the blacklist I intend to return early next year probably. I will look at the situation. It depends on the deportation case,” she said.
