[Press Release] House of Representatives has passed on third and final reading the bill protecting human rights defenders | Rep. Edcel Lagman

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House of Representatives has passed on third and final reading the bill protecting human rights defenders

Hon. Edcel Lagman, photo source http://ph.yfittopostblog.com/

For two consecutive Congresses, the 17th and the current 18th, the House of Representatives has passed on third and final reading the bill protecting human rights defenders (HRDs).

Albay Rep. Edcel C. Lagman, the principal author of HB 10576, entitled “An Act Defining the Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of Human Rights Defenders, Declaring State Responsibilities, and Instituting Effective Mechanisms for the Protection and Promotion of These Rights and Freedoms”, disclosed that the House approved on third reading on Monday, 17 January 2022, the crusading measure affording full protection to HRDs.

The precursor HB 9199 was passed by the House on 03 June 2019 during the 17th Congress but was not acted upon by the Senate due to time constraints.

The enactment of the Human Rights Defenders Act will put an end to the prevailing impunity on the extrajudicial killings and extreme harassment of HRDs.

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[Maikling Kwento] BORIS | ni Rene Boy Abiva

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BORIS

ni Rene Boy Abiva           

Aripue’y isang nilalang

Utusa’t ampaw sa katwiran

Kaya tama lang din na walang

Laman ang kanyang utak at tiyan.

Isang araw ay umulan nang hindi gaanong kalakasan. Iyong eksakto lang. Kumbaga’y hindi nakakairita sa pandinig ng tao. Ni hindi ito nakakabagabag. Para itong salidummay na humehele sa mga gutom sa layang malay at katawan ng mga aripuen. Mga aripuennahindi singlaya ng mga pipit, panal, sitsitok, at martines na lumipad at dumagit sa dibdib ng alangaang. Mga aripuenna hindi singlaya ng tubig na ipadama ang kanyang bagsik at lumanay sa pamamagitan ng pagdaloy at pagsalpok sa mga matatalim at dambuhalang bato sa kandungan ng Ilog Magat.

Tama. Hindi nga isang malayang nilalang ang mga aripuen. Mula sa pagputok ng mga silahis sa likod ng Sierra Madre hanggang sa paglubog nito sa likod ng Caraballo ay bihag sila. Paano ba naman kasi’y naturingan silang mga animal.

Naturingang mas mababa sa hayop?

Ano ang tawag kaya rito?

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[Statement] On the order for barangays to submit list of unvaccinated residents | CHR spokesperson, Atty Jacqueline Ann de Guia

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Statement of CHR spokesperson, Atty Jacqueline Ann de Guia, on the order for barangays to submit list of unvaccinated residents

The Commission on Human Rights continues to remind the government that upholding human rights remains to be an important consideration in crafting and implementing policies addressing the pandemic. With the recent directive of the Department of the Interior and Local Government for barangays to submit a list of unvaccinated individuals in their communities, we hope that this does not result in the breach of the right to privacy of individuals and, more importantly, not restrict the unvaccinated from accessing essential good and services. We cannot use the present pandemic as a justification to set aside pertinent laws and human rights standards meant to protect human rights and dignity in all situations and at all times.

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[Statement] Reaksiyon ng TDC sa tugon ng DEPED Central sa hinihinging academic health break

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STATEMENT
January 14, 2022

Reaksiyon ng TDC sa tugon ng DEPED Central sa hinihingi nating academic health break

Ang naging tugon ng DepEd ay hindi kasinglinaw ng atin sanang inaasahan. Ni hindi nga nila ito tinawag na academic break, health break o academic health break. Kaya hindi pa rin ito masasabing ganap na tagumpay sapagkat sa halip na desisyunan ng Central Office, partikular ng Kalihim Leonor Briones, ipinaubaya nila sa field officials, mga schools division superintendents (SDS) at Regional Directors (RD) ang determinasyon ng hinihinging break sa kani-kanilang nasasakupan. Ang resulta, maaaring magkaiba-iba ang petsa, maging ang bilang ng araw ng break na ito sa bawat dibisyon o rehiyon. Maaari rin namang walang break sa iba.

Hindi rin Memorandum o Order mula sa Office of the Secretary ang inilabas kundi memorandum mula sa Office of Undersecretary for Curriculum and Instructions at pirmado ni Usec Diosdado San Antonio.

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[Off-the-shelf] Pantayong Pananaw at Paninindigang Pulitikal | ni Jose Mario De Vega

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PANTAYONG PANANAW AT PANININDIGANG PULITIKAL

Ang munting akdang ito ay isang pagtatangkang ituloy ang sa tingin ng manunulat na ito ang hindi natapos na proyekto o layon ng aklat na Pook at Paninindigan: Kritika ng Pantayong Pananaw ni Propesor Ramon Guillermo (2009) at isagad yaon hanggang sa lohikal nitong konklusyon.

Sa harap ng mga problemang panlipunan na kinakaharap ng bayang ito at gayundin ng iba’t ibang mga bansa sa mundo ukol sa pamamayagpag at tila paghahari ng populismo at pasismo o alalaumbaga ng malayong kanan (far right) ay kinakailangang magbalik-aral at tanaw ang mga rebolusyonaryo, aktibista, manghihimagsik, at akademikong mulat kung papaano ba ito susuriin at kakabakahin gamit ang mga kaisipan at kamalayan na naroon na rin sa nasabing mga bayan. 

Hindi maaaring hanggang wika at kalinangan lamang ang pakikibaka para sa katarungang panlipunan

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[Statement] Teachers call for academic health break | TDC

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Teachers call for academic health break

Field offices of the Department of Education (DepEd) are now intensifying the physical reporting of teaching personnel despite the fact that there are no essential tasks to be done in schools. This is a clear violation of DepEd’s own rule that says work-from-home (WFH) is the default set-up for classroom teachers. At the time of this writing, these DepEd offices are imposing physical reporting, while the country is experiencing record high COVID-19 infection.

At a time when these leaders should be focusing on the psychosocial well-being of teachers and students, it appears that to some offices, “normalcy of operation” outweighs the well-being, even the very lives of Filipinos. It is incomprehensible how oblivious DepEd officials can be of the danger of their choices.

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[From the web] Labor and Environmental Groups Push for a Stronger Anti-Asbestos Policy to Protect Human Health | Ecowaste Coalition

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Labor and Environmental Groups Push for a Stronger Anti-Asbestos Policy to Protect Human Health

There is an urgent need to modify and improve the Philippines’ twenty-one year old asbestos policy regulation on the manufacture and use of asbestos and asbestos containing materials in the country, said a confederation of labor unions and a coalition of environmental organizations.

According to the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) and the Ecowaste Coalition, the moribund Chemical Control Order (CCO) for Asbestos issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) on January 6, 2000 needs serious improvement in its mandate to protect the public in the light of its passive enforcement, growing non-compliance to the regulation, and the unfettered importation into the country of raw asbestos and materials and products containing asbestos.

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[From the web] Amid the resurgence of COVID-19 cases, Teachers asked DEPED to retain their work from home status | TDC

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Amid the resurgence of COVID-19 cases, Teachers asked DEPED to retain their work from home status

Amid the rising cases of COVID-19 especially in Metro Manila, the Teachers ’Dignity Coalition (TDC) has asked the Department of Education (DepEd) leadership to publicly declare that the agency is compliant with its own policy on alternative work arrangements for public school teachers. In a series of Facebook posts this morning, TDC Chairperson called the attention of DepEd officials to reiterate the alternative work arrangement of public school teachers.

“Yung ilang schools/SDOs sa Reg 3 & Reg 4A na nagpapasok sa teachers physically, relax, ‘wag niyo na dagdagan ang exposure ng tao para hindi matulad dito sa NCR. Remote modalities ang teaching, remember?” Basas posted referring to some schools in Central Luzon and CALABARZON requiring the physical presence of their teachers despite the remote teaching modalities employed by DepEd.

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[From the web] Tinay Palabay wins prestigious human rights award; dedicates prize to fellow rights defenders | Kodao

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#HumanRights

Tinay Palabay wins prestigious human rights award; dedicates prize to fellow rights defenders

Karapatan’s office was busy Wednesday afternoon and people were scurrying about, as usual. But no list was being updated and no frantic calls were being made. The stacks of papers atop tables were being ignored and the placards were shoved to corners where they could not get in the way of the bustle.

The chatter was happy and the jokes came thicker and faster than usual. And instead of harried-looking human rights defenders, they looked like party-goers in their Sunday best.

In a space usually reserved for quick consultations when there are reports of arrests and killings stood a ring light beside a human rights lawyer, make-up brushes in hand. Under the lights sat Karapatan’s secretary general Cristina “Tinay” Palabay being glammed up.

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[People] Defending and Protecting Human Rights | by Fr. Shay Cullen

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#HumanRights

Defending and Protecting Human Rights
by Fr. Shay Cullen
10 December 2021

When we look around the world today, we see that the people of many countries do not have their human rights fully respected, honored, protected, and celebrated by the governments that have the duty to do so. In fact, everywhere there are many violations by state agencies, police and military, and fellow citizens. The human species aspire to the highest values of being human but are weak, remiss, and dismissive in implementing and respecting those high ideals of the rights inherent in the species because they are human.

Everyone should be aware that every person, according to the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, has inalienable rights that must be respected and protected. Irrespective of their nationality, ethnic origin, sex, gender, color, religion, language, or any other status, every person has universal rights. These are the rights: to life, to water, food, security, family, employment, education, freedom and health, and the right to live as they choose.

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Freedom of Expression Conference 5 (FreeXP.con)

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FREEXP.CON 5

Theme: “MAGPAHAYAG, MAKISANGKOT AT MAGING BAYANI PARA SA KARAPATANG PANTAO!”

BACKGROUND

The right to freedom of speech and expression – the right to speak out, to debate, to criticize, to disseminate information on matters of public importance – is one of the most basic of human rights. It is guaranteed under Article 19 of the United Nation’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights and enshrined in the 1987 Philippine Constitution. Yet the right to speak out, to inform, to report, and to engage in open debate is now being curtailed. This right including other fundamental human rights is under attack by the government and private citizens and groups, and on many fronts including the digital sphere.

Today, the challenges in continuously exercising and defending the right to free speech and expression are unsurmountable under the current political dispensation. There is certainly a systematic and widespread machination to undermine the right to free speech and expression that is being carried by the government and its political allies with the use of punitive laws to control, discredit, punish and silence its critics. Misleading information and hate-driven commentary have been spreading via social media platforms for quite a long time and these are now manipulating public opinion, warping meaningful discourses, and polluting the public moral fabric.

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[Event] Annual Honoring of Martyrs and Heroes | Bantayog ng mga Bayani

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#HumanRights #NeverAgain

Annual Honoring of Martyrs and Heroes

We present four more heroes and martyrs of the resistance against the Marcos dictatorship. On November 30, Andres Bonifacio day, we will unveil their names on the Wall of Remembrance.

#NeverAgainNeverForget

https://web.facebook.com/bantayogngmgabayani/photos/a.1008871302466673/4808267292527036/

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[Statement] Palayain si Sally Ujano! | PKKK

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#HumanRights #FreeSallyUjano

Palayain si Sally Ujano!

Mariing kinukundina ng Pambansang Koalisyon ng Kababaihan sa Kanayunan (PKKK) ang pagka aresto kay Sally Ujano, isang kilalang child’s rights advocate at isa sa mga unang nagbigay gabay sa aming samahan sa pagsugpo ng karahasan laban sa mga kababaihan. Inaresto ng mga nakasibilyang pulis nitong November 14 si Sally sa kanyang tahanan sa Bulacan. Dinala sya sa Camp Crame, at sa loob din ng araw na iyon ay nagpost ang PNP Region 3 sa Facebook na nagsasabing si Sally ay may kasong rebelyon nuong 2005, at isa sa mga most wanted na lider ng CPP-NPA.


ANG AKUSASYON KAY SALLY UJANO AY ISANG MALAKING KASINUNGALINGAN.

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[From the web] Harry Roque fails in bid for International Law Commission post | GMAnews

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#HumanRights #ILC

Harry Roque fails in bid for International Law Commission post

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque failed to obtain a seat in the 34-member International Law Commission (ILC), the body of experts that help develop and codify international law.
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“My candidature at the ILC was a challenging campaign throughout but we met it head-on. Unfortunately, we did not succeed,” he said in a statement posted on his social media account.

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[From the web] Why the Laud quarry, ‘mass grave’ for DDS victims, haunts Lascañas | RAPPLER.COM

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#HumanRights #Killings

Why the Laud quarry, ‘mass grave’ for DDS victims, haunts Lascañas

When a death squad maintained by the mayor of the Philippines’ largest city goes on a killing spree, where do they bury the bodies?

For their biggest dumping ground – where hitmen had confessed to having buried thousands – the notorious Davao Death Squad (DDS) had a six-hectare quarry owned by policeman Bienvenido Laud in Barangay Ma-a.

In an affidavit submitted to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in October 2020, a copy of which was obtained by Rappler, former DDS insider Arturo Lascañas detailed how the Laud quarry had become a “mass grave” for persons whom then-mayor Rodrigo Duterte had ordered them to kill.

Read full article @ https://bit.ly/3oELuPK

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[Event] World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims | KAGULONG

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#HumanRights #RoadSafety

Sa ika-21 ng Nobyembre, nananawagan uli ang buong daigdig upang alalahanin ang mga nasawi dahil sa aksidente sa kalsada. Araw-araw dito sa Pilipinas ay humigit-kumulang sa 34 na katao ang namamatay dahil dito.

Kailangan nating ipagtanggol ang karapatang mabuhay! Kailangan nating manawagan ng ligtas na kalsada para sa lahat!

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11th #HumanRights Pinduteros’ Choice Awards

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11th #HumanRights Pinduteros’ Choice Awards

“Magpahayag, Makisangkot at Maging Bayani para sa karapatang pantao!”

HR Pinduteros’ Choice Awards – pagkilala at pasasalamat sa mga Bayani ng HR Online.

Sa ika-labing isang taong pagpapasalamat at pagkilala para sa ating mga ka-HR Pinduteros sa kanilang patuloy na pagpapahayag para sa karapatang pantao, inihahandog ng Human Rights Online Philippines o HRonlinePH ang 11th #HumanRights Pinduteros’ Choice Awards.

Sa pamamagitan ng taunan nating pagtitipon na ito ay kinikilala natin ang makabuluhang ambag ng mga indibidwal at grupo para sa pag-mumulat, pagbibigay inspirasyon at pagkilos para sa karapatang pantao.

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[Statement] Convicted tax evader Bongbong Marcos disqualified from running as president claims petition filed with COMELEC

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#HumanRights #NeverAgainToTheMarcoses

Convicted tax evader Bongbong Marcos disqualified from running as president claims petition filed with COMELEC

On November 2 2021 a Petition to Cancel or Deny Due Course the Certificate of Candidacy of Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. under Section 78 in relation to Section 74, Article IX of the Omnibus Election Code was filed with the Commission on Elections (COMELEC). The Petitioners represent a cross-section of political detainees, human rights and medical organizations that opposed the Marcos dictatorship.

The Petition points out that Marcos’ Certificate of Candidacy contains multiple false material representations. Specifically, Marcos falsified his Certificate of Candidacy when he claimed that he was eligible to be a candidate for President of the Philippines in the 2022 national elections when in fact he is disqualified from doing so.

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[Off-the-shelf] Ethical Guide for Filipino Journalists | NUJP

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#HumanRights #Media

Ethical Guide for Filipino Journalists

The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines remains steadfast in upholding the ethical conduct of journalism in the Philippines.

This year, in its goal, to strengthen the self-regulation of media in the country, the NUJP, in partnership with Internews and USAID, took on the challenge to produce a comprehensive and updated Ethical Guide for Filipino Journalists.

A product of rigorous research and a series of consultations and discussions with fellow Filipino journalists, this document aims to serve as a tool to guide journalists and newsrooms on the ethical conduct of journalism.

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[Right-Up] All Souls’ Day and the Petition for Disqualification of BBM | by Norman Novio

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#HumanRights #NeverAgaintoTheMarcoses

All Souls’ Day and the Petition for Disqualification of BBM

Yesterday, All Souls’ Day, which was declared by President Rodrigo Duterte as a Special Working Public Holiday, a group of petitioners from the ranks of political detainees, human rights, and medical organizations that opposed the Marcos dictatorship filed a petition to disqualify Ferdinand Marcos Jr. from running as president in the May 2022 elections.

The Petition to Cancel or Deny Due Course the Certificate of Candidacy of Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. under Section 78 concerning Section 74, Article IX of the Omnibus Election Code was filed with the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), the country’s supreme poll body.

Fr. Christian “Toots” Buenafe, O.Carm. was one of the petitioners and said that Marcos’ Certificate of Candidacy (CoC) is full of false material representations claiming he was eligible to be a candidate for the upcoming national polls when in fact he is not. They claim that BBM is a convicted criminal, ergo, cannot be a candidate. For the record, Marcos was convicted by the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City in a July 27, 1995 Decision for his multiple failures to file income tax returns. Apparently, BBM did not pay his taxes for 4 years so it could be classified as tinted with moral turpitude.

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[From the web] FB is now Meta. And it wants to monetize your whole existence | by James Muldoon

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#HumanRights #Meta

Facebook Is Now Meta. And It Wants to Monetize Your Whole Existence.
By James Muldoon

You log on, and you’re herded into a virtual bar to listen to your boss telling jokes. Meanwhile, a metaverse-first real estate company is selling off overpriced property in a virtual London, and gamers are competing for non-fungible tokens. Welcome to the Zuckerverse — a place nobody asked for but in which we may soon all be spending a lot of time.

On Thursday, Facebook changed its name to Meta, as part of a broader shift toward the so-called metaverse — a network of interconnected experiences partly accessed through virtual reality (VR) headsets and augmented reality (AR) devices. In Zuckerberg’s own words, “you can think about the metaverse as an embodied internet, where instead of just viewing content — you are in it.” The most recognizable examples of this in action are virtual office meetings with VR goggles, playing games in an expansive online universe, and accessing a digital layer on top of the real world through AR.

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[Right-Up] In Defense of Madness and Mayhem: A Review of Reconstructing Dutertismo | by Jose Mario De Vega

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#HumanRights #Dutertismo

In Defense of Madness and Mayhem: A Review of Reconstructing Dutertismo

This paper is a brief review of Mark Pablo’s article published by ADRiNSTITUTE for Strategic and International Studies in 2017 in a period wherein we could say that ‘Dutertismo’ was at the peak of its power.

The question or the research problem of the author is not to ask what Dutertismo means, as if we already know what this thing or tendency is, but to offer a rereading or a reconstruction of this phenomenon.

As per the author, his research objectives are as follows:
1) Map the political, economic, and social terrain, contextualizing Duterte’s rise to power;
2) Critique the charge that ‘Dutertismo’ is purely a theatrical phenomenon, and
3) Suggest a reinterpretation of ‘Dutertismo’ as a movement aimed at altering the post-Edsa configurations of power and at laying a blueprint for a new order and narrative for the future Philippine states.

Pablo began his exposition by highlighting Professor Quimpo’s analysis of the class division in the Philippines and intertwined it with Professor McCoy’s contention that Philippine post-Edsa politics is nothing more than the collision between the state and politico-economic dynasties.

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[Off-the-shelf] Local Government Powers in Extractive Mining and Other Environmentally Critical Projects | LRC

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#HumanRights #Mining

Local Government Powers in Extractive Mining and Other Environmentally Critical Projects

In celebration of Indigenous Peoples’ Month, we’ve come out with a primer on the powers of local government units (LGUs) in mining and other environmentally critical projects.

Designed in an FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) format, it is meant to help LGUs, local communities, and civil society organizations (CSOs) find legal anchors for their environmental causes.

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[Press Release] Church, green groups unite in pushing for pro-people and pro-environment leaders in the May 2022 elections | ATM

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#HumanRights #Mining

Church, green groups unite in pushing for pro-people and pro-environment leaders in the May 2022 elections

Environmental human rights defenders announced in a press conference today that it will actively push for the election of pro-people and pro-environment leaders in the May 2022 elections, especially those who are already allies and champions of green bills. They also said they will engage in the elections by exposing corporate donors from the extractives industry who are funding candidates for electoral positions.

Jaybee Garganera, Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM) National Coordinator, said that “politicians funded by mining companies are already compromised.” He clarified that “when elected, these candidates will certainly repay their political debt and push for the agenda of large-scale mining at the expense of the public they are sworn to serve.”

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[People] Three Catastrophes are Already upon the World | by Fr. Shay Cullen

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#HumanRights #ClimateChange

Three Catastrophes are Already upon the World
Shay Cullen
29 October 2021

We must face the unpleasant and painful truth about what is happening to the planet and our lives. You may think that the climate catastrophe facing mankind is global warming but in fact, there are at least three catastrophes behind the climate change disaster.

The first one is the effect of CO2, nitrous oxide, and methane that are covering the planet like a blanket and locking in the heat of the sun. It is like putting the planet in a glass-covered greenhouse. The heat is causing devastating droughts, leaving millions of people without food. This is causing massive migration of the hungry populations from the South to the North. The earth and forests are burning down. In Russia, Europe, the USA, and Australia, enormous forest fires destroy all before them.

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[Statement] Stop the Unmitigated Public Fund Hemorrhage ! | ASSERT

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#HumanRights #Teachers

Stop the Unmitigated Public Fund Hemorrhage !

Restore our Hard-earned Taxpayers’ Contributions to their Originally Intended
People Beneficiaries !

So summarize the calls of our teacher representatives from the Action and Solidarity for the Empowerment of Teachers (assert) for the judicious use of scarce public resources who troop to the Department of Education at ULTRA Pasig today, October 27 to present to Secretary Leonor Briones the 1446 first batch of public school teachers who either tested positive and/or died of COVID from March16, 2020 when Proclamation 929 placed the entire Luzon and parts of Visayas and Mindanao under state of calamity due to the pandemic.

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[Event] #CourageON: The shrinking spaces for indigenous women in the Philippines | Lilak

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#HumanRights #IndigenousPeoples #Women

The shrinking spaces for indigenous women in the Philippines

Seventh episode of the “#CourageON: Tumindig, Makialam, Kumilos” community show, where we discuss the plight of indigenous women from different parts of the Philippines and indigenous peoples’ rights advocates.

As October marks National Indigenous Peoples Month, we take this opportunity to hear the stories and experiences of indigenous women. What are the unique challenges that indigenous women face during the pandemic? What can we do to provide more support to them?

Titled “#CourageON: The shrinking spaces for indigenous women in the Philippines,” the seventh episode of the community show features panel discussions with indigenous women and indigenous peoples’ rights advocates. It discusses struggles on the ground and possible ways we can help provide more opportunities for indigenous women to grow their skills and protect their rights.

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[Event] Youth Against Destructive Mining: Cultural Night 2021 | ATM

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#HumanRights #Mining

ATM Youth Network invites you to watch the event “Youth Against Destructive Mining: Cultural Night 2021” at 8PM, October 26, 2021

The cultural night will provide an avenue for participants and relative networks to share each others’ sentiments with regards to mining in a fruitful yet informational entertainment event.

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[From the web] DOJ’s review of the drug war’s extrajudicial executions veils truth on Duterte’s central policy of killing | iDEFEND

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#HumanRights #Killings

DOJ’s review of the drug war’s extrajudicial executions veils truth on Duterte’s central policy of killing

Back in April 2019, the Supreme Court ordered the Solicitor General to release to petitioners, all records of extrajudicial killings related to the government’s war on drugs. It turned down the appeal of the Solicitor General to keep the files with the government for reasons of national security. The petitioners-FLAG and CENTERLAW, should have received the records of at least five thousand cases of killings during police operations. The petitioners have also asked the Supreme Court to declare the war on drugs unconstitutional. The PNP and the Solicitor General eventually sent copies of what CENTERLAW described as “rubbish” documents, mostly unrelated to the drug war.

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[Statement] Philippines: Government review a woefully insufficient response to victims of “war on drugs” | AI

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#HumanRights #Killings

Philippines: Government review a woefully insufficient response to victims of “war on drugs”

The Philippine’s Department of Justice’s (DOJ) recently released matrix – containing limited information from its review of a mere 52 cases among thousands of deaths during police anti-drug operations – is another deeply disappointing indicator of the continuing lack of accountability for the thousands of unlawful killings and other crimes under international law, and human rights violations committed under the so-called “war on drugs”. The review is woefully inadequate, fails to meet international standards, and is a distressingly belated effort for the thousands of families in their grueling quest for justice. Amnesty International remains concerned that the Philippine authorities, including DOJ’s current review, continue to show no meaningful progress toward ensuring access to justice and reparations for victims, nor provides a clear commitment to end its bloody crackdown on illicit drugs.

This investigation by the DOJ comes amid further domestic and international demands for accountability for crimes under international law and human rights violations committed as part of the “war on drugs” launched by the Duterte administration in 2016. On 15 September 2021, the pre-trial chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) announced that it has authorized the Office of the Prosecutor to open an investigation into crimes against humanity in the context of the drug war and also those in Davao City by the alleged Davao Death Squad from 2011 to 2016. The UN Human Rights Council, while falling short of mandating an investigative mechanism, recently provided a grim update on the country’s human rights situation as part of the High Commissioner for Human Rights’ report in September this year. Moreover, within the country itself, there are increasing calls from civil society and the public for candidates in the upcoming May 2022 national elections to condemn and propose more humane and human rights-compliant alternatives to address the health and human rights impacts of the use and sale of drugs.

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[Right-Up] A Review and Commentaries on The Early Duterte Presidency in the Philippines by Professor Mark R. Thompson | by Jose Mario De Vega

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#HumanRights #Politics

A Review and Commentaries on The Early Duterte Presidency in the Philippines by Professor Mark R. Thompson

This article of Professor Thompson published in 2016 by Journal of Current Southeast Asian Affairs aims to give a critical analysis of what the Duterte administration will be like. I could say that he is indeed a visionary and early on he clearly saw accurately how brutal and hideous the said regime would be.

Rodrigo R. Duterte has “stuck to his guns” in carrying out his campaign pledge to launch a violent anti-drug campaign. He fulfilled his promise of making the sharks at the Manila Bay fat due to the vicious, relentless, organized, simultaneous and nefarious brutal “War on Drugs” in a national scale. This is the upgraded version of the Davao model or template of mass murder.

Duterte’s electoral victory is an irony, by virtue of the fact that “six years of political stability and high growth under the relatively liberal and supposedly reformist administration of President Benigno “Noynoy” S. Aquino, III.”

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[People] Pedophiles Abuse Children while Court of Appeals Sleeps | by Fr. Shay Cullen

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#HumanRights #Children

Pedophiles Abuse Children while Court of Appeals Sleeps
Shay Cullen
22 October 2021

The recent decision of the Department of Education (DepEd) to dismiss for Grave Misconduct from the teaching profession Franco N. Aranas, a teacher in New Cabalan High School, Olongapo City should have been a swift decision to protect children and see justice done. However, it has taken almost three years before the decision was made to dismiss the abusive teacher who sexually abused his students. Yet this teacher, Franco N. Aranas, while found guilty for Grave Misconduct by the DepEd’s Regional Director, May B. Eclar, can continue teaching in the same school until the dismissal from service is confirmed by Secretary Leonor Briones of the DepEd. We earnestly hope that Secretary Briones acts speedily to confirm the decision of the Regional Director to protect children and see justice is done. The DepEd must not harbor a child abuser among its ranks.

What is wrong with the system where it is clear justice delayed is justice denied, a system that favors the sex abusers and ignores traumatized children? It casts a dark shadow over the institutions. The teacher was accused of sexually abusing three minor students, one 14 and two 15 respectively, in the Sunshine Lodge near the Victory Liner station in Olongapo City on two separate occasions in June and August 2018. This place ought to be investigated for enabling human trafficking and child abuse, violations of law.

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[Statement] BIDA BIDA SA SAYA | SPARK

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#HumanRights #Workers

BEEAST EMPLOYERS

BIDA BIDA SA SAYA

Kamakailan lamang inilabas ng Forbes Magazine ang listahan nila ng ‘di umano world’s “best employers” para sa taong 2021. Sa 750 na mga kumpanya, iba’t ibang higanteng korporasyon ang napabilang dito kagaya na lang ng Samsung Electronics, IBM, Microsoft, Amazon, at Apple na limang nangungunang employers sa nasabing listahan. Kabilang rin sa naturang listahan ang binansagang “3 Philippine blue chips” Jollibee Food Corporation sa pwestong 256th habang ang Ayala Corp. ay nasa 487th at Aboitiz Equity Ventures naman sa 665th.

Habang ang mga kumpanyang ito ay humahalakhak sa tuwa ay marami pa ring empleyado mula sa Jollibee Foods Corporation ang patuloy na nagdurusa base na rin sa kanilang mabigat na karanasan sa kanilang pagtatrabaho sa dambuhalang kumpanyang ito. Ang karaniwang hinaing ng mga empleyado rito ay ang labis na trabaho ngunit kakarampot na sahod at ang hindi natatapos na kontraktwalisasyon na siyang lubid-sakal sa mga trabahador ng JFC.

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[Event] Launching of the ATM Mining Hell Week

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Launching of the ATM Mining Hell Week

Every March and September, Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM) embarks on a Mining Hell Week (MHW) to surface the issues surrounding destructive large-scale mining and its impact on mining-affected communities.

The March MHW is to denounce the continued implementation of the flawed Philippine Mining Act, while the September MHW is to counter the narrative of the mining industry led by the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines (COMP) to entice more investors and companies to dig minerals in the Philippines.

This September 2021, the COMP did not organize a mining conference. Nevertheless, ATM deems it crucial to counter the pro-mining stance of the Duterte regime and the agenda of the COMP in the coming elections. ATM will challenge the proposed continuity of exploiting the country’s natural resources at the expense of nature and marginalized communities.

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[From the web] Philippines Loses Staunch Rights Defender | Human Rights Watch

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Philippines Loses Staunch Rights Defender | Human Rights Watch

Philippines Loses Staunch Rights Defender
Chito Gascon Led Commission on Human Rights During Trying Years
By Carlos H. Conde
Senior Philippines Researcher
Human Rights Watch

The Philippines has lost a beloved human rights defender. Jose Luis Martin Gascon, known to all as “Chito,” who had chaired the governmental Commission on Human Rights since 2015, died October 9 from complications due to Covid-19, his family said. He was 57.

Friends and allies in the human rights movement mourned Gascon’s passing. “The country lost a dedicated public servant who never cowered in fear in asserting people’s rights and civil liberties,” said Fides Lim, spokesperson of Kapatid, a group advocating for the rights of political prisoners. “Amid the challenges faced by the CHR … he carried on with dignity, strength and courage,” said Jacqueline Ann de Guia, Gascon’s colleague at the commission. Even the military, often the target of commission investigations, paid its respects.

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[People] Children are the Most Important of All- Jesus | by Fr. Shay Cullen

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Children are the Most Important of All- Jesus | by Fr. Shay Cullen
10 October 2021

The attention of most adults is primarily focused on what they consider to be the most important reality in the world- themselves, especially many clerics. Yet there is one overriding unassailable truth that stands above all else in the teaching of the founder of Christianity, Jesus of Nazareth.

The truth that 2.382 billion Christians, including 1.329 billion Roman Catholics, have supposedly bound themselves to accept and obey is that children are the most important in the Kingdom of God. To accept, recognize and affirm a child with that exalted status and dignity is to accept Jesus himself.

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[From the web] Opinion: Duterte is worried about the ICC. He should be. | by Carlos Conde

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Opinion: Duterte is worried about the ICC. He should be. | by Carlos H. Conde

Clarita Alia remains anguished, nearly 20 years after I first heard her express her grief.

“His name was Danilo Lugay,” she told me over the phone recently from Davao City, in the southern Philippines. Police killed Lugay in September 2020 during a drug raid; a news report of the killing said he had fought back and police officers shot him. Lugay, 28, was the grandchild of Alia’s sister Naneth.

Alia’s voice cracked as she described what happened — the same pained voice that I heard when I interviewed her in 2002 for a report on the killing of her sons Richard, Christopher and Bobby, all teenagers. Assailants later murdered a fourth son, Fernando, in 2007. This unimaginable family tragedy gave Alia, a vegetable vendor who lives in a slum community, the label of poster mother for the city’s bloody “war on drugs,” in which police use extrajudicial executions instead of prosecutions as a primary method of punishing criminal suspects.

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[From the web] Congratulations, Maria and Rappler. You have made the country proud | LnM

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Congratulations, Maria and Rappler. You have made the country proud

Laban ng Masa joins the country in celebrating Maria Ressa’s being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, along with Russian journalist Dimitry Muratov. Maria and the news and opinion outlet she headed up, Rappler, have been in the forefront of the defense of freedom of the press. For continuing to expose the crimes of the Duterte regime, Ressa and Rappler were subjected to legal persecution and attempts at political annihilation and economic asphyxiation by the administration.

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[Statement] On the passing of CHR Chair Gascon | PMCJ

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𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐏𝐀𝐒𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐎𝐅 𝐂𝐇𝐑 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐈𝐑 𝐆𝐀𝐒𝐂𝐎𝐍

The Philippine Movement for Climate Justice mourns the passing of Commission for Human Rights Chair Jose Luis Martin “Chito” Gascon, who was a steady ally in the fight for Climate Justice and Human Rights.

Chito led his inquiry into the effects of climate change to human rights through discussions with petitioners and victims of Climate Catastrophe in the Philippines, as well as scientists and experts on climate change.

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[Statement] Passage of UN Human Rights Council (HRC) Resolution recognizing the right to a safe, healthy and sustainable environment | ATM

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Passage of UN Human Rights Council (HRC) Resolution recognizing the right to a safe, healthy and sustainable environment

Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM) welcomes the recent passage of the UN Human Rights Council recognizing the right to a safe, health and sustainable environment, in Geneva.
While the resolution is not binding to all member-states, this sends a strong message to all countries on the urgency of addressing climate change impacts and listening to the demands of the most vulnerable countries as we face greater risks especially in the midst of this pandemic.

ATM believes that the Philippine government must immediately pass domestic laws and national policies that will subscribe and fulfill this mandate. It is necessary to recall that the 1987 Philippine Constitution already recognizes this under Article 2, Section 16 which states “The State shall protect and advance the right of the people to a balanced and healthful ecology in accord with the rhythm and harmony of nature”.

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[Statement] Pagpupugay at pasasalamat sa buhay na inialay sa pagtatanggol ng karapatang pantao | iDEFEND

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Pagpupugay at pasasalamat sa buhay na inialay sa pagtatanggol ng karapatang pantao

Nagluluksa ang iDEFEND kabilang ang komunidad ng mga human rights defenders sa biglang pagyao ng Chairperson ng Commission on Human Rights of the Philippines na si José Luis Martín C. Gascón. Kilala bilang Chair Chito, saksi ang iDEFEND sa kanyang dakilang buhay at paninindigan para sa kalayaan, demokrasya at karapatang pantao. Nakakadalo siya sa ating general assembly upang makipagtalakayan sa mga usapin ng ating bansa at himukin ang ibayong pagkilos, pagharap sa mga pagsubok at pagkakaisa.

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[Press Release] KWENTO NATIN ‘TO: Catch these events and be inspired in reclaiming the stories of our nation as we near the 2022 elections | ACTIVE VISTA

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KWENTO NATIN ‘TO: Catch these events and be inspired in reclaiming the stories of our nation as we near the 2022 elections

With the theme Kwento Natin ‘To: Reclaiming the Stories of our Nation, human rights organization DAKILA jam-packed the Active Vista International Human Rights Festival (AVIHRF) 2021 with events, forums, and film screenings that tell the stories — real and imagined — of our fellow Filipinos. One of the festival’s forums, Press in Distress: Will Independent Journalism Survive in SEA?, also witnessed a historical moment when speaker Maria Ressa, Rappler CEO and president, received the news of her being the first-ever Filipino to win the Nobel Peace Prize live during the forum.

As the national elections draw near — when warring narratives try to fill our consciousness — DAKILA and Active Vista shall continue to bring forward events on the last two days of the festival that will contribute to shaping and reclaiming the narrative of our nation come the 2022 elections.

So as the festival closes on October 10, invite your friends and family members! We’ve got an epic line-up of relevant events to fill your weekend!

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[Statement] CHR spokesperson, Atty. Jacqueline Ann de Guia, on the passing of CHR Chairperson Chito Gascon

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Statement of CHR spokesperson, Atty. Jacqueline Ann de Guia, on the passing of CHR Chairperson Chito Gascon

It is with deepest sorrow that we announce the passing of Chairperson Jose Luis Martin “Chito” Gascon. He passed away early this Saturday morning, 9 October 2021, due to Covid-19 complications. He was 57.

At a time of unprecedented human rights challenges, Chair Chito courageously and steadfastly upheld the constitutional mandate of the Commission. Amidst the unrelenting attacks against the institution and to him personally, he was unwavering and unflinching in fighting for the universal values of freedom, truth, and justice that are essential in the pursuit of human rights. He was undaunting in the fight for human rights, rule of law, and democracy out of deep reverence to the equal rights and dignity of all.

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[Press Release] ATING GURO to file Nomination for Partylist Elections

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ATING GURO to file Nomination for Partylist Elections

Teachers’ group ATING GURO Partylist will file its certificate of nomination as well as the individual CONA of its nominees today, October 7.

This despite the Comelec’s initial denial of their petition for accreditation to allow them to participate in next year’s partylist elections. On June 25, the Comelec Second Division dismissed the instant petition filed by the party for two grounds, first that the petition signed by the party’s Public Information Officer (PIO) designated by the party’s governing board as certified by its Chairperson and Secretary-General. And that the party failed to prove that majority of its members belong to the sector it wishes to represent- teachers, active and retired, public and private and their dependents.

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[Press Release] Low wages, attacks on workers rights, hinder fulfillment of decent work agenda | EILER

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Low wages, attacks on workers rights, hinder fulfillment of decent work agenda – EILER

The country still lags behind on the Decent Work Agenda, according to Labor NGO Ecumenical Institute for Labor Education and Research (EILER).

As the domestic employment crisis deepens, more and more workers are forced to engage in irregular, precarious or intermittent employment with lower wages. Widespread joblosses, rampant contractualization, and inadequate decent job opportunities with living wages, are worsened by the militaristic pandemic response and intensified repression against trade union and human rights.

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[Event] Killing State: Confronting the Normalization of State Violence in the Philippines | PAHRA

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#HumanRights #Killings #UNHRC48th

Killing State: Confronting the Normalization of State Violence in the Philippines

The Philippine Alliance of Human Rights Advocates (PAHRA), Fastenopfer, Franciscans International (FI), and the Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA) would like to invite your organization or representatives to the “Killing State: Confronting the Normalization of State Violence in the Philippines” on Thursday, October 7, 2021 at 5PM Philippine time.

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[Event] ‘Press in Distress: Will Independent Journalism Survive In SEA?’ | DAKILA/ACTIVE VISTA

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‘Press in Distress: Will Independent Journalism Survive In SEA?’

It’s not just in the Philippines. Cracking down on press freedom is a tactic used by other governments with authoritarian tendencies, including those of our neighbors Indonesia and Malaysia. We can push back—as one. In Press in Distress: Will Independent Journalism Survive in SEA?, media organizations and press freedom advocates from all three countries will come together in a live forum to discuss how we all can work together to overcome local and regional threats to press freedom.

DAKILA, Active Vista, Rappler (Philippines), Aliansi Jurnalis Independen (Indonesia), Centre for Independent Journalism (Malaysia), Freedom Film Network (Malaysia), and Gerakan Media Merdeka (Malaysia) invite you to ‘Press in Distress: Will Independent Journalism Survive In SEA?’, a simultaneous regional forum on the state of the press in Southeast Asia on October 8, 2021, Friday, 4:00 pm.

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[Statement] More than flowers and praises, teachers deserve dignity | TDC

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More than flowers and praises, teachers deserve dignity
(Statement for World Teachers’ Day 2021)

This school year will be the second chapter of Philippine education under the pandemic. Last September 13, a new school year was, according to the DEpEd, successfully opened. But we have to forgo most of the excitement that accompany school openings.

Only a month earlier, new cases of infection hovered in the vicinity of the dreaded 20K per day, a streak of record highs Filipinos could only watch with their eyes. Then came the announced pilot implementation of face-to-face classes in some 120 schools that seems to have miraculously “managed” the Covid-19 inflation somewhat.

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[Event] The Rise Against Reprisals: An Online Forum on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders in the Philippines | PAHRA

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#HumanRights #ProtectHRDs

The Rise Against Reprisals: An Online Forum on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders in the Philippines

The Philippine Alliance of Human Rights Advocates (PAHRA), Fastenopfer, Franciscans International (FI), and the Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA) present The Rise Against Reprisals: An Online Forum on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders in the Philippines on Monday, October 4, 2021, at 5PM Philippine time.

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