UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights to review the Philippines GENEVA (23 September 2016) – The UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights is due to review the Philippines on Wednesday 28 and Thursday 29 September. The Philippines is one of the 164 States* that have ratified the International Covenant on Economic,…
Call For Nominations – 2017 MARTIN ENNALS AWARD FOR HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS Deadline: 9 November 2016 Nominations can be submitted electronically at http://www.martinennalsaward.org The Award is granted annually to an individual, or exceptionally an organisation, in recognition of their commitment and ongoing efforts in the defence and promotion of human rights. The MEA aims to…
Defenders of economic, social and cultural rights need to be protected In a joint submission (available here), the International Service for Human Rights, the Medical Action Group, the Philippine Alliance of Human Rights Advocates and the Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact have highlighted the risks human rights defenders working on economic, social and cultural rights face…
BMP Kinundena ang Pagpaslang sa Pangulo ng Unyon sa RE taxi Kinokondena ng Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP) ang pamamaril kay Edilberto Miralles, pangulo ng unyon sa RE taxi sa harap ng opisina ng National Labor Relations Commission ng labor department ngayong araw. Nagdududa kaming ang may kakayahan at kagustuhan nito ay ang management…
Investigate the Killings, Stop the Impunity iDEFEND (In Defense of Human Rights and Dignity Movement) condemns in the strongest terms the killing of former union president of R&E Taxi Edilberto Miralles , who was gunned down in front of the National Labor and Relations Commission (NLRC) office in Quezon City before noon on September 23.…
Dakila Launches The Digital Museum of Martial Law in the Philippines http://www.MartialLaw.ph On September 21, 2016, 44 years after the signing of Proclamation No. 1081 that put the Philippines under Martial Law, Dakila, a group of artists working on human rights, launched the Digital Museum of Martial Law in the Philippines. The Digital Museum of…
Welcome the Refugees Fr. Shay Cullen 22 September 2016 The bombs keep falling and the barrels fall from the sky and burst with a massive boom and searing, burning flames consume the men, women and children. The chlorine chemical poison spreads among the ruins of Allepo. The people are dead, others are suffering in agony,…
SENTRO condemns 7th labor killing this September, result of culture of violence It is another sad day for human rights. Mr. Edilberto Miralles, former union president of R&E Taxi, was gunned down in front of the National Labor Relations Commission this morning. Initial information suggests it was another daytime riding-in-tandem killing. Sentro is appalled by…
End the Killings. Uphold Human Rights. Defend Democracy Today is the International Day of Peace. Development and peace go together, and this is why the United Nations sees as central to the achievement of sustainable development the drastic reduction of all forms of violence, the promotion of the rule of law, and equal access to…
PM condemns vigilante style killing of a leader The militant Partido Manggagawa (PM) condemned the killing of one of its leaders in Talisay, Cebu today. Orlando Abangan, a community leader of PM-Cebu, was shot at close range by a lone gunman around 8:00 am while he was on his way home in Sitio Lawis, Barangay…
Imbistigahan ang Davao Death Squad! Muling nabuhay sa kamalayan ng mamamayan ang Davao Death Squad (DDS) dulot ng ginawang testimonya ni Edgar Matobato sa katatapos na pagdinig ng Senado hinggil sa isyu ng extra-judicial killings. Pinangunahan ng Senate Committee on Justice and Human rights, idinetalye sa pagdinig ang partisipasyon ng anya’y dating miyembro ng naturang…
Philippines: Independent Investigation of Duterte Needed Allegations of Direct Involvement in Death Squads Call for UN Role (New York, September 16, 2016) – The Philippine government should invite an independent investigation involving the United Nations into allegations of direct involvement by President Rodrigo Duterte in extrajudicial killings, Human Rights Watch said today. On September 15,…
The Vulnerable Children of the Philippines Fr. Shay Cullen 7 September 2016 The death of two small Filipino children caught in the gunfire of the vigilante assassins sent to kill suspected drug users and peddlers is an unfolding tragedy. The shoot-to-kill policy that has claimed as many as 2500 people marked as suspects and killed…
COMMENTARY: Duterte and the ghosts of Plaza Miranda By: James Ross @inquirerdotnet Philippine Daily Inquirer September 8, 2016 Forty-five years ago, on Aug. 21, 1971, three grenades were tossed at the speaker’s podium in Manila’s Plaza Miranda, where thousands had gathered for an opposition rally. Nine people were killed and at least 100 wounded in…
Labor rights group says NMW law can bring relief to working poor The Center for Trade Union and Human Rights welcomed the labor department’s announcement that it is considering a national minimum wage (NMW) law to ease “overpopulation” in Metro Manila. CTUHR reacted saying a higher national minimum wage will not only stem internal migration…
iDEFEND Questions “State of Lawless Violence” In Defense of Human Rights and Dignity Movement (iDEFEND) strongly condemns the Davao City Night Market bombing which resulted in the deaths of 14 people and injuries to 67 others. This calculated, deliberate, and brutal assault on defenseless civilians is intolerable, and the perpetrators of this most atrocious act…
The Methods of Martial Law Fr. Shay Cullen 02 September 2016 The shocking death toll of Filipinos when Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law in 1972 sent shivers through Filipino society at the time. Such widespread killing of Filipinos by summary execution had never been seen since the Japanese invasion and their severe occupation. His regime…
Philippine Police Killing Spree Demands Accountability Hundreds Dead in “Anti-Drug Operations” Since July 1 By Phelim Kine Deputy Asia Director, Human Rights Watch The Philippine National Police (PNP) confirmed today at a Senate hearing on extrajudicial killings the shocking human toll inflicted by the police in the “war on drugs” launched by President Rodrigo Duterte…
The Death Penalty is Being Implemented. 18 August 2016 Fr. Shay Cullen Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez and Capiz Rep. Fredenil Castro want to bring back the death penalty in the Philippines as a deterrent to crime. It can be said that the death penalty is already effectively and practically in force daily. As many as ten…
Study confirms massive contractualization, slave-like conditions for majority of Valenzuela workers A study conducted by CTUHR together with students from University of the Philippines-Manila among 120 worker respondents in Valenzuela revealed that a huge majority of workers experience long hours of work and receive wages way below minimum rates. Data from a survey conducted between…
Proseso Hindi Abuso! Huwag nang Dagdagan ang 1000 Biktima ng Pagpatay! 1000 na ang naging biktima ng pamamaslang dulot ng marahas at di katangap-tangap na pamamaraan ng pagtugon sa krsis sa droga sa loob ng 95 araw mula Mayo 10 hanggang Agosto 12, 2016 (ABS-CBN data). Sa araw na ito, ipinagluluksa ng iDEFEND ang patuloy…
Defend our Life, Protect our Dignity! Stop the Killings! “Woe to those who enact unjust statutes and who write oppressive decrees, depriving the poor of justice, robbing the weakest of my people of their rights.” (Isaiah 10:1) Inspired by the teachings of the Catholic Church pastoral exhortation to build a society more human, more worthy…
Don’t make the war on drugs a war on human rights, new HR group told President Duterte August 12, 2016 – Newly formed human rights coalition, In Defense of Human Rights and Dignity Movement (iDefend|) calls on President Rodrigo Roa Duterte not to make his government’s war on drugs a war on human rights. In…
A Historical Gathering of Human Rights Defenders A Convergence of Courage and Determination Launch of iDEFEND [In Defence of Human Rights and Dignity Movement ] Formerly Citizens’ Council for Human Rights August 12, 2016 Taimtim na Saludo at taas-kamao sa lahat na Tagapagtanggol ng Karapatang Pantao! This gathering of Human Rights Defenders to launch iDEFEND…
Marcos’ Crimes Will Never Be Forgotten Balay stands alongside martial law victims and activists against the burial of the late president Ferdinand Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani (LnMB). The LnMB is a national shrine meant to pay tribute to those who sacrificed their lives and brought honor to our country. It is meant…
