In the Philippines, a court has ordered the arrest of the sitting vice president on charges of threatening the president, marking a rare and consequential moment in the nation's democratic life. The warrant arrives not in a vacuum but amid a deepening rivalry between two leaders elected separately and now openly opposed, with the 2028 presidential race casting a long shadow over every legal and political move. History reminds us that when courts become arenas for political contest, the line between justice and power grows difficult to see — and the cost is often borne by the institutions thems