[From the web] Action Network Human Rights-Philippines held Side Event at the 19th Session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva

Action Network Human Rights–Philippines held Side Event at the 19th Session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva On March 6, the Action Network Human Rights-Philippines (AMP), in close cooperation with Amnesty International and Franciscans International, successfully organized a Side Event at the UN Human Rights Council. The event was themed “Human rights defenders…

Human Rights Online Philippines

March 17, 2012

1–2 minutes

Amnesty International, franciscans international, Human Right, Human Rights, Human rights defender, Philippine, Politics, Raymond Manalo, United Nations Human Rights Council, Universal Periodic Review

Action Network Human Rights–Philippines held Side Event at the 19th Session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva

On March 6, the Action Network Human Rights-Philippines (AMP), in close cooperation with Amnesty International and Franciscans International, successfully organized a Side Event at the UN Human Rights Council. The event was themed “Human rights defenders combating impunity in the Philippines”.

Experienced Filipino Human Rights Activists gave an insight into their work and explained why impunity still exists and how it should be tackled. A special focus was put on the hindrances within the Justice and the Security Sector to break impunity.

The afternoon took off with two powerful short films on exemplary human rights violations: the Maguindanao massacre and the abduction and torture of Raymond Manalo. Afterwards, Prof. Harry Roque Jr. (University of the Philippines) explained how the climate of impunity makes possible such horrible atrocities as the Maguindanao massacre and also gave reasons for impunity by pointing to political alliances, corruption and the weak Philippine justice system.

Cristina Palabay (Karapatan) reacted to the case of Raymond Manolo by giving an update on the prosecution of General Palparan, the problem of Private Armed Groups and the Campaign to End Impunity in the Philippines. Hazel Galang (Amnesty International) and Maike Grabowski (Action Network Human Rights-Philippines) then shifted the focus to
the upcoming UPR of the Philippines.

They summarized the recommendations that were made to the Philippines in 2008 and outlined which of those had been accepted and rejected and reported on the status of implementation. In his second presentation Prof. Roque outlined the weaknesses of the legal system with all his experience as attorney and professor of law. Max de Mesa (Philippine Alliance of Human Rights Advocates) also drew on his long experience as human rights activist and spoke about the situation of Human Rights Defenders in the Philippines, especially in relation to the Security Sector. Finally questions and recommendations for the upcoming Universal Periodic Review of the Philippines in May 2012 were suggested to the audience by the panelists.

http://www.asienhaus.de/menschenrechte-philippinen/