Philippines Uses Humiliation as COVID Curfew Punishment LGBT People Ordered to Dance and Kiss on Video By Ryan Thoreson Researcher, LGBT Human Rights Watch The spread of COVID-19 has given Philippines law enforcement broad discretion to enforce public health measures. When discrimination is added to the mix, that unfettered power can be particularly demeaning and…
“Rambulan” -Engineered Bayanihan Words by Joshua M. Romero and Nikka V. Salandanan Rumbles we see on TV always end with one bringing the belt home, but the rumble engineers are in today will sure end with everyone winning, proving that while the white flag remains unraised, there is hope. Community quarantine due to the COVID-19…
π·ππ ππ πππππππ πππ πππ πππππππ’π ππ ππππππ ππ ππππππ ππ πππππππ’π ππππ ππππππ ππππππππππ πππ ππππππππππππ’ππ ππ πππππππππ ππ πππ π»πΆπ±π ππ ππ πππππππ’ππ! Kinukundena ng True Colors Coalition (TCC) ang karahasan na ito ng isang barangay kapitan sa mga LGBT at sa mga kabataang nahuli sa curfew. Bilang opisyal, alam niya dapat kung hanggang…
Philippine Authorities Go After Media, Online Critics Misuse of COVID-19 Law as Dozens Face Probes, Backlash By Carlos H. Conde Researcher, Asia Division Human Rights Watch @condeHRW The Philippine government is cracking down on journalists and social media users critical of the governmentβs COVID-19 response, threatening media freedom and the rights to free expression and…
ππππ₯π§: Joshua Molo, editor-in-chief of UE Dawn, the official student publication of the University of the East, was forced to apologize in public over a Facebook post criticizing the Duterte administration’s negligence amid the coronavirus pandemic. This happened after Molo argued with his former high school teachers, who were offended by Molo’s online post. At…
We strongly condemn the harassment of Joshua Molo, the Editor-in-Chief of the University of the East’s official publication UE Dawn, for publishing his opinion about the current administration’s response in the #COVID19 pandemic. Earlier today, Molo was threatened by barangay officials with the filing of a libel case against him if he will not issue…
Young People Locked in Dog Cages, Coffins, Stripped Naked By Margaret Wurth and Carlos H. Conde Philippine authorities have subjected children to absurdly abusive treatment for violating curfew and quarantine rules imposed to limit exposure to COVID-19. Police and local officials in several parts of the country have mistreated people detained for violating COVID-19 regulations,…
The shockwaves caused by the pandemic on our economy and political life indicates that we will come out as COVID-19 refugees and with each of us nursing an aftershock. The media failed to offer a focused reportage on the elements of shock that hit the government and the people. Hence, it tends to appear that…
As COVID-19 sweeps across the globe, we face an unprecedented crisis that is having an impact on us all in varied but profound ways. My hope, and that of everyone here at the Fund for Global Human Rights, is that you, your loved ones, the activists we support, and the communities they serve remain safe…
VIENNA / COPENHAGEN / WARSAW, 2 April 2020 β Noting a troubling rise in domestic violence in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns and self-isolation guidelines in many countries, OSCE leaders called today for measures to be taken by governments to protect women and children. They said that unfortunately, for them home is not always…
Opposition Senator Leila M. de Lima slams health authorities for delaying the implementation of national testing for COVID-19 even after admitting that they are in possession of thousands of test kits, both purchased and received from foreign donors. De Lima also joins the calls of several groups and personalities who are petitioning the government to…
I was COVID-19 Patient No. 4 “The only way to battle this is through faith and belief that you will be better.” Ito ang mensahe ni Atty. Carlo Navarro, isang COVID-19 survivor. Siya si Patient number 4, ang kauna-unahang Pilipino na nagkaroon ng COVID-19 sa Pilipinas. Ngayong patuloy ang kanyang paggaling, ibinahagi niya ang kanyang…
In response to the call for prayers today, 29 March 2020, by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) for the countryβs medical frontliners against the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the women and men of the EcoWaste Coalition earnestly offer the following prayers: 1. For the doctors, nurses, clinical laboratory technicians, administrative personnel, ancillary…
COVID-19 Response Should Respect Detainee Rights (Manila, March 26, 2020) β Philippine authorities should respect the basic rights of people detained for violating the governmentβs COVID-19 regulations, Human Rights Watch said today. Police and local officials have confined those arrested to dog cages and forced them to sit in the midday sun as punishment, among…
The following is a synthesis of recommendations issued by a variety of international organizations on the prevention and control of COVID-19 in prisons. The purpose of this document is to streamline the copious amount of information generated daily on this subject in order to assist DIGNITY partners to make sense of it all and take…
βWe are fine here in spite of the limited movements of goods due to the lockdown being implemented by the government because our own farm provides us with the commodities we need.β These words of assurance from Teodulo Badillo and his wife Delia, our farmer leaders in Molave, Zamboanga Del Sur who called me up…
As COVID-19 focuses the worldβs attention on infectious diseases, we have our eyes on one of the most dangerous places for the spread of such outbreaks: prisons, where densely packed people and (often) limited access to health care make for a risky situation. Overcrowding, poor ventilation, and infrastructures, deficient health, hygiene, and sanitation conditions favour…
The following overriding and critical questions about the COVID-19 pandemic afflicting the country need immediate candid answers from the Duterte administration: Why is the Presidentβs Contingency Fund of P13 billion barely untouched when it was purposely appropriated to respond to calamities like the deadly novel coronavirus? Reliable sources reveal that only a low of P1…
As I try to pass time in lockdown in Italy and come to terms with the new normal in my country, I often think about my grandmother and the 1943 degree certificate that was once on display in her living room. “Victor Emmanuel, King of Italy and Albania, Emperor of Ethiopia”, the certificate proclaimed in…
As cases of COVID-19 continue to rise in the country, Amnesty International Philippines urges the government to plan ahead for a clearer and more sustainable approach to respond to the pandemic. Human rights must be at the center of all prevention, preparedness, containment and treatment efforts from the start, in order to best protect public…
