The son of former Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos has been ordered to appear in federal court during a goodwill visit here next month.
The order, issued Wednesday, allows Ferdinand ``Bong Bong'' Marcos Jr. to travel to Hawaii despite contempt-of-court charges pending against him and his mother, former Filipino first lady Imelda Marcos. It bars speaking in public about pending litigation.
Judge Manuel Real ordered Marcos to appear in court Feb. 7. Real is overseeing the distribution of assets to thousands of Filipinos who won a US$2 billion judgment against the Marcos estate in 1995, when a Honolulu jury found the late Philippine president responsible for executions, disappearances and torture during his 14-year reign under martial law. The initial award has grown to US$3.7 billion with interest.
Imelda Marcos and her son also were found in contempt of court in 1995 after Real ruled they violated a court order freezing their assets; and were fined US$100,000 a day since then.
The Court of Appeals in San Francisco upheld a previous ruling freezing the former dictator's assets that are held in the Philippines and around the world.
Ownership of the funds has been disputed since they were discovered in 1986, soon after Marcos was forced from power and fled to Hawaii. The deposits totaled about US$356 million but have almost doubled from interest and later investments.
Meanwhile, arguments are scheduled before the 9th Circuit in March on the ownership of an additional US$40 million. Last summer, Real ordered those assets be used to start paying the judgment awarded in 1995, but a financial company set up by Marcos that originally held the money appealed.
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