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,…
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…
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,…
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…
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…
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…
Dispatches: Philippine Officials Shrug at Surge in Drug Killings Police Admit Dozens Killed Since New President Took Office By Phelim Kine, Asia Deputy Director, Human Rights Watch Philippine National Police chief, Director General Ronald dela Rosa, provides cold comfort for Filipinos aghast at the surge in police killings of suspected drug dealers and drug users…
Women groups urge Duterte to outdo PNoy in upholding women’s rights The Women’s Legal and Human Rights Bureau, Inc. (WLB), together with members of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) Working Group Philippines, challenges the new administration to perform better than the Aquino administration in terms of promoting…
Dispatches: Philippines’ Displaced Children Barred from School By Carlos H. Conde Hundreds of Filipino children were barred from attending class when schools opened this week. The reason? The children have been living in shelters in Zamboanga City since their families fled fighting in the southern Philippines, and the Zamboanga City government failed to submit their…
Journalists’ killings: UN experts urge Philippines president-elect to stop instigating deadly violence GENEVA (6 June 2016) – Two United Nations independent experts on summary executions, and on freedom of expression today urged Philippines president-elect Rodrigo Duterte to stop instigating deadly violence immediately. The experts strongly condemned Mr. Duterte’s recent statements suggesting that journalists are not…
Groups call for green justice seek courts to immediately stop destructive mining projects Manila – Mining operations in Nueva Vizcaya, Zambales, Palawan and Eastern Samar were denounced by environmental groups today, for violating environmental laws and human rights of communities. For World Environment Day (June 5), Sanlakas, Concerned Citizens of Sta Cruz Zambales (CCOS), Didipio…
Dispatches: The Philippine Picture of Badjao Displacement By Carlos H. Conde The striking image of a Filipino girl – a member of the indigenous Badjao tribe – begging in the streets of Lucban, a town in Quezon province south of Manila, has gone viral in the Philippines and prompted a flood of public concern and…
Is ‘Responsible Mining’ possible without strong regulations? By Cecilia Olivet, Jaybee Garganera, Farah Sevilla and Joseph Purugganan In the last decade, the resource-rich country of the Philippines has bet heavily on the mining industry as a strategy for development, but this focus has come under growing scrutiny. With 47 large-scale mines in operation and growing…
Corporate Accountability for Human Rights Abuses: FIDH Launches Updated Guide for Victims and NGOs on Accountability and Redress Mechanisms As the “EU Roadmap to Business and Human Rights Conference” opens today in Amsterdam, FIDH is pleased to announce the online publication of an updated version of its “Corporate Accountability for Human Rights Abuses: A Guide…
Dispatches: The Philippines’ Pay-Per-Hit Police By Phelim Kine The newly elected mayor of Cebu City has an innovative approach to crime control in this central Philippine city: A 50,000 peso (US$1,080) bounty for each “criminal” killed by his police force. Mayor-elect Tomas Osmeña announced on May 16 that he would pay that sum to any…
Committee against Torture calls on the Philippines to fully implement rehabilitation programme The UN Committee against Torture is calling on the Government of the Philippines to fully implement a national rehabilitation programme, to ensure effective investigations into torture allegations and to make a public statement at the highest level that torture will not be tolerated.…
Philippines: Witnesses, Victims Recount Shooting, Beating by Police Apparent Excessive Force Used at Kidapawan Protest (Kidapawan City, the Philippines) – The Philippine police may have used unnecessary lethal force in breaking up a demonstration by farmers in Kidapawan City on April 1, 2016, Human Rights Watch said today. The police used batons and guns against…
Philippines: Credibly Investigate Police Shootings of Protesters Apparent Excessive Force Used at Kidapawan Protest (Kidapawan City, April 9, 2016) – The Philippine police may have used unnecessary lethal force in breaking up a demonstration by farmers in Kidapawan City on April 1, 2016, Human Rights Watch said today. The police used batons and guns against…
“Make Human Rights the core of your governance.”- HR groups challenge candidates Human rights groups today challenged all candidates in the 2016 national and local elections to support the Human Rights Agenda as their electoral platform. Gathering in the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman, Quezon City, at a media forum in celebration of the…
