HUMAN RIGHTS MUST BE STRENGTENED IN THE PHILIPPINES

The human rights situation in the Philippines became an issue in recent years with reports of
rising number of victims of extra-judicial killings, prompting the United Nations to take action.
The Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Mr. Philip Alston,
visited the Philippines in 2007 and subsequently filed a report with recommendations on how to
address the situation. The European Union (EU), in seriously considering the situation, launched
the EU-Philippine Justice Support Programmed [EPJUST] to "help all stakeholders in the
Philippines - in government, in the judiciary and in the Commission on Human Rights, and in
civil society - to work together to address the critical issue of extra-legal killings and enforced
disappearances." This project was formally launched on 11 February 2010 in Manila.
The Philippine government created in 2002 the Presidential Human Rights Committee (PHRC)
as the "advisory body to the President in effectively addressing all human rights issues in the
country." Its role and membership were strengthened in 2006. The Executive Director of its
secretariat, Undersecretary Severo S. Catura, explained the response of the Philippine
government to the human rights situation in the country in a study meeting held in Osaka on 5
February 2010. Following are highlights of the presentation based on his discussion paper.

Local and international human rights organizations launched campaigns on the extra-judicial
killings issue, demanding accountability for those involved in the killings. Media organizations
in the Philippines and their international counterparts also campaigned to stop the killing of
members of the media.
We, peoples of the Philippines, give highest value to the dignity and fullness of life of the human
person and share a common aspiration for human rights—even as we speak different languages
and dialects, profess different spiritual beliefs and uphold different ideologies.

Ours is a history of revolutionary struggle against all forms of oppression for national freedom,
justice, equality and peace. The same struggle and aspirations for freedom and respect for human
rights have inspired our collective spirit to become a nation proud of our heritage and diverse
culture. Today, we rekindle the same revolutionary spirit in our struggle against the negative
effects of globalization, debt burden, environmental destruction, social inequality and poverty.
These make human and peoples’ rights our foremost concern.

We assert that human and peoples’ rights are our fundamental, inherent and inalienable rights to
life, dignity and development. We recognize that these rights are universal, interdependent and
indivisible and are essential to fulfill and satisfy our civil, political, economic, social, cultural,
spiritual and environmental needs. They are what make us human.
The Philippine human rights situation is not however limited to the issue of extrajudicial killings
and disappearances. The country faces problems related to its political, economic, social and
cultural conditions that breed many more human rights problems.
In the last two decades, policy prescriptions for tackling the global fisheries crisis have focused
on improving fisheries governance by establishing unique individual or community rights to
fishery resources. We argue that basing the case for fishery governance reform on assumed
economic incentives for resource stewardship is insufficient when there are other sources of
insecurity in people's lives that are unrelated to the state of fishery resources, with a focus on
small-scale developing-country fisheries in particular. We argue that in the context of
participatory or rights-based fisheries governance, more secure, less vulnerable fishers make
more effective and motivated fishery managers, and that insecurity among poor fishers can be
most effectively addressed by social and political development that invokes the existing legal
framework supporting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This viewpoint goes much
beyond the commonly held belief in 'rights-based fishing.'
Human Rights Lawyers' assassinations, disappearances, bogus charges and detention, death
threats, harassment, and intimidation are all issues that have mostly gone unnoticed by the
general public. The lack of attention to the issue turns it into a 'problem,' as the public is assumed
to have no sympathy for the cause and the government fails to enforce laws protecting Human
Rights Defenders (HRDs). This study would like to hypothesize further on the chilling effect that
this phenomenon has had on our Makabayang Abugado, as well as its implicit effect on the
country's selective justice. The study's primary purpose is to advocate for the protection of our
HRDs, particularly Human Rights Lawyers who are at the frontline of the fight against
corruption, poverty, and injustice in the country. In order to adequately depict this phenomenon
using a Neo-Marxist perspective, interviews and historical tracing of the issue on the three key
variables of the study: the media, government, and attorneys themselves would be conducted.
According to online data, the frequency of attacks on human rights lawyers is fast increasing
around the world, but they are still unknown and unacknowledged, unlike attacks on journalists
or other HRDs. What is absent is not only public information, but also the information that has
been provided to them and the government's actions.
In Santo Tomas and Compostela Valley, Davao Region, Mindanao, the Philippines, this study
looked into infringement of small farmers' rights over banana plantations, with a focus on the
farmers' agreements with global agribusiness businesses. The study's goal was to add to the
existing literature evaluations on contract farming by focusing on the right to work and the right
to enjoy safe and healthy working conditions (CF). Scholars in this subject have looked at this
topic from a variety of perspectives; nonetheless, a perspective that emphasizes farmers' rights is
still understudied. In Santo Tomas and Compostela Valley, Davao Region, Mindanao, the
Philippines, this study looked into infringement of small farmers' rights over banana plantations,
with a focus on the farmers' agreements with global agribusiness businesses.
The human rights situation in the Philippines deteriorated in 2020. President Rodrigo Duterte’s
murderous “war on drugs,” ongoing since he took office in June 2016, continued to target mostly
impoverished Filipinos in urban areas. The police and unidentified gunmen linked to the police
have committed thousands of extrajudicial executions. The killings increased dramatically during
the Covid-19 lockdown, rising by over 50 percent during April to July 2020 compared to the
previous four months. There has been almost total impunity for these killings.
In June 2020, the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
published a highly critical report on the human rights situation in the Philippines. In October, the
UN Human Rights Council passed a resolution continuing scrutiny of the situation in the country
for another two years, but without creating an international investigation.
Threats and attacks, including killings, against left-wing political activists, environmental
activists, community leaders, Indigenous peoples’ leaders, journalists, lawyers, and others rose in
the past year. The government harassed journalists and media companies, including through
politically motivated prosecutions and other legal action; a court convicted journalist Maria
Ressa of cyber libel in June, while the government shut down the country’ largest television
network the following month.
In March, the government placed the country under lockdown, restricting people’s movement to
limit the spread of Covid-19, using the military, as well as the police and local officials, to
enforce the lockdown. Tens of thousands of people were arrested and often detained in crowded
jails and holding centers where they were at increased risk of contracting the virus. Police and
local officials targeted vulnerable populations, including lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender
(LGBT) people and children, and in some cases using public humiliation and cruel treatment.