(CNN) — Hong Kong will suspend a controversial China extradition bill, its leader said Saturday, in an apparent bid to quell further unrest and mass demonstrations throughout the semi-autonomous Chinese city. Speaking after consultations with lawmakers, Chief Executive Carrie Lam said passage of the bill would be suspended and a second reading due to take…
Human rights defender protection bill closer to becoming law On 3rd June 2019, in ongoing effort to protect human rights defenders (HRDs) from continued attacks and harassment, the Philippines House of Representatives unanimously approved a Human Rights Defenders bill. Although the bill only becomes law once the Senate and President approves it, the recent decision…
About one in five of the Philippines’s 106 million people lives in extreme poverty, getting by on less than $2 a day. Many, including children, work long hours as street vendors or labourers to make enough to feed themselves. Hunger occurs the most in the agriculture and fishing sectors where 70 percent of workers are…
TRUE COLORS COALITION – PILIPINAS We forge on! Ngayong taon, kasabay ng ika-50 taong paggunita sa Stonewall Riot na naganap sa New York, nagpapatuloy ang buong komunidad ng LGBT sa paglaban sa diskriminasyon at karahasang ginagawa sa ating buong komunidad. Bago pa man ang mismong Stonewall Riot, pinatunayan na ng mga LGBT ang ating di-matatawarang…
The 1987 Constitution guarantees that no Filipino shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law. As long as a citizen abides by the law, he or she should not be in trouble. But what if you’re apprehended by authorities for some reason – or in times of emergency, like the…
For those of you who do not remember or not familiar with Archimedes Trajano, it’s about time you should get acquainted with his story. And when we talk about Archimedes Trajano, Imee Marcos’ name is not far behind. Imee is the daughter of the late Ferdinand Marcos, the president who declared the Martial Law of…
There are many what if’s – most of them dreadful – surrounding the Sunday (June 9) arrest of veteran Mindanao journalist and development worker Fidelina Margarita “Gingging” Avellanosa-Valle. A brief rundown of the case: Shortly past 11 a.m, journalists got an alert posted from Valle’s son, Rius, the Mindanao spokesperson of the Save Our Schools…
GENEVA (7 June 2019) – UN human rights experts* today called on the United Nations to establish an independent investigation into human rights violations in the Philippines, citing a sharp deterioration in the situation of human rights across the country, including sustained attacks on people and institutions defending human rights. “Given the scale and seriousness…
Mahigpit na kinondena ng Karapatan ang desisyon ng Korte Suprema na alisin ang Filipino at Panitikan bilang mga pangunahing asignatura sa kolehiyo. Nakikiisa ang Karapatan sa lahat ng grupong patuloy na naninindigan para igiit ang ating pambansang pagkakakilanlan dahil ito ay mahalang gulugod ng karapatang pantao ng mamamayan. “Sa hakbang ng Korte Suprema, inaatake ang…
On May 17, Taiwan became the first country in Asia to pass marriage equality into law. A few days later, Congress released an online poll on its website asking citizens whether they are in favor of legalizing “same-sex unions as civil partnerships” in the Philippines. Suddenly, social media was abuzz with varying opinions on the…
Amnesty International Philippines, on the occasion of its 58th global anniversary, opened the nominations for Season Two of Ignite Awards for Human Rights. First of its kind, it is Amnesty Philippines’ highest honor given to human rights defenders in the country. “Despite the socio-political turmoil we are experiencing right now, we at Amnesty strongly believe…
Pope Francis encouraged Bishop Pablo David of Kalookan to face the challenges in his diocese with “courage”. The pope met with the first of the three groups of bishops from the Philippines May 20 during the “ad limina” that prelates are required to make to the Vatican. Seated around the pope, David and other bishops…
Nag-alay ng Banal na Misa ang pamunuan ng Radyo Veritas sa burol ni social justice advocate Sr. Crescencia Lucero, SFIC, sa St.Joseph College sa pangunguna ni Rev. Fr. Roy Bellen, Vice President for Operations ng Radio Veritas846. Sa pagninilay ng pari, sinabi nito na hindi nakikita ang halaga ng buhay ng isang tao sa haba…
This bid is problematic and if approved (it has been given due course but not yet approved by the Comelec en banc), will set a dangerous precedent on 3 grounds. First, because this is a way of circumventing the constitutional prohibition against executive officials using government resources to campaign during the elections; second, because it…
International Criminal Court Should Investigate Ex-Police Chief Many pundits have interpreted the recently concluded midterm elections in the Philippines as an endorsement of President Rodrigo Duterte’s “war on drugs.” Duterte’s favored candidates dominated the Senate, House, and local elections, prompting foreign affairs secretary Teodoro Locsin, Jr. to pronounce, “he [Duterte] and the war just won”…
The waste and pollution watch group EcoWaste Coalition today denounced the latest attempt to dump into the Philippines mixed plastic waste this time from Hong Kong, China. The incident reinforces the call made by the group urging the government to formalize as soon as possible President Rodrigo Duterte’s marching orders issued last May 6 banning…
Since his presidential campaign in 2016, Rodrigo Duterte has promised to change the country’s form of government to federalism. Now, more than two years after he was elected President, the following proposals that seek to revise the constitution have been filed in Congress: (1) Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) No. 8; (2) PDP-Laban Federalism Institute’s…
Bobi Tiglao used to understand that. And used to think it was a good thing. A long time ago, when we were young and foolish, Malou Mangahas and I were booted out of The Manila Chronicle for standing up for Bobi Tiglao. We had wanted Bobi to succeed Amando Doronila as editor of the newspaper.…
“In its 3rdLabor Day, the Duterte regime continues to fail on its election promises to end ENDO, provide substantial wage increase and halt the skyrocketing prices. Yet, it never has second thoughts on busting unions and blaming workers’ restlessness for factory closures. It astutely used Mindanao Martial Law to militarize workplaces, forced unionists to surrender…
27 April 2019, Manila, Philippines – Two weeks before the upcoming midterm elections, Greenpeace Philippines, together with Amnesty International Philippines, People’s Food Movement, Green Thumb Coalition, and the Public Affairs Ministry of Our Lady of Remedies Parish launched the #IsyuHindiKandidato initiative, which seeks to highlight important issues that should take the center stage this May.…
