MANILA – New Manila mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso was urged by an urban poor group to protect the livelihoods of the vendors in light of his crusade to clear the streets of Manila.
“Vendors are getting meager income. This comes when they, too, are reeling from the effects of the government’s tax reform package. They would rather address their empty stomachs than comply with the city requirements. How much more that they are being asked to leave?” said Kadamay chairperson Gloria Arellano in a statement.
Arellano said the informal sector makes up a large part of the income and livelihood of those residing in urban poor communities as a result of the lack of vital industries in the country that should provide decent-paying jobs. Pushing them further into the peripheries, she added, “only exacerbates their situation.”
The urban poor group said that while they agree with the Manila clean-up, it should not be at “the greater expense of the poorest and most underprivileged citizens.”
“They are not criminals and they should never be treated as such. There are plenty of solutions out there instead of just driving them away,” Arellano said.
MANILA — Human rights groups said that if the Philippine government would not abide by the resolution calling for investigation of the human rights situation in the country, it should resign as a member of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC).
The Philippines is one of the 47 members of the UNHRC, having elected in 2018 for a three-year term. It is one of the 14 states that voted against the resolution proposed by Iceland calling for impartial investigations into the killings in the Philippines. The UNHRC adopted the resolution July 11 with a vote of 18.
In a press conference, July 12,
Cristina Palabay, Karapatan secretary general, said the Philippines should resign as a member of the UNHRC if it would not accept and cooperate.
Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo and Foreign Affairs Secretary Teddy Boy Locsin condemned the resolution.
Locsin said in a statement, “[The Philippines], in good conscience, cannot abide by it.”
Palabay criticized both Panelo and Locsin for invoking the “sovereignty” card and for downplaying the resolution.
“These are paltry excuses deliberately meant to gloss over the fact that the Philippine government has ratified 12 out of 13 international human rights treaties and that is a signatory to numerous international human rights instruments that it is obliged to respect, uphold and implement,” Palabay said.
Human rights treaties adopted and ratified by the Philippines government. (From the UN website)
President Rodrigo Duterte said the UN resolution would not prosper. Asked if he would allow UN investigators in the country, Duterte said in a report, “Let them state their purpose first and I will…”
Mervin Toquero of the National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP) said that barring entry of UN investigators into the country would only prove that “this administration is hiding something.”
Asked to react on Philippine National Police Chief Oscar Albayalde’s claim that the resolution was pushed by the communists, Palabay said it’s a worn-out lie.
The Karapatan official credited the victims of human rights violations and other human rights groups and solidarity groups abroad for the pressure exerted in the international community.
For Emily Soriano, whose son was among those killed in Duterte’s “war on drugs,” the UN resolution provides them hope.
Soriano said the families of tokhang victims have turned to international groups and bodies as efforts to achieve justice here have remained futile.
“How could we expect the police to investigate our cases if they themselves are the perpetrators of these crimes?” Soriano told Bulatlat in Filipino.
Amnesty International has pegged the number of victims of war on drugs to 27,000.
As a result of Duterte’s refusal to uphold the country’s sovereignty on its exclusive economic zone, China has been able to complete the installation of its military bases in seven reefs that are within the waters being claimed by the Philippines.
This was the creative take of protesters before the Chinese consulate in Makati as they commemorate the third year since the favorable ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration, disputing China’s nine-dash claim over the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone in the West Philippine Sea.
At least 300 protesters joined this morning’s program, carrying Philippine flags and creative placards denouncing China’s intrusion in the West Philippine Sea.
In a fiery speech, PINAS co-convenor and former Bayan Muna Rep. Neri Colmenares said the proposed charter change will pave the way for more Chinese intrusion not just in the West Philippine Sea but also in the country’s economic and military affairs.
The Philippine victory, Colmenares noted, “could have been used to galvanize many other countries to oppose China expansion” over the disputed waters, which President Duterte refused.
Photo by Janess Ann J. Ellao/Bulatlat
As a result of Duterte’s refusal to uphold the country’s sovereignty on its exclusive economic zone, China has been able to complete the installation of its military bases in seven reefs that are within the waters being claimed by the Philippines.
Among the most affected are indigenous peoples who are facing displacement from their ancestral domains to favor the construction of dams from loans based on lopsided deals with China.
A 60-year-old businesswoman, Margie Reyes, saw today’s protest action in Facebook and arrived with her friend, as she could no longer take the Philippine government’s wrongdoings.
She told Bulatlat, “we have three branches in the government to supposedly serve as check and balance. But this is long gone. It no longer exists. It is now up to the people to do checks and balances and promote national consciousness.”
In the wake of attacks against media practitioners, with some resulting in deaths, the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) will hold a forum on safety on Saturday, July 13.
“Despite the government’s efforts to discredit and malign victims, their relatives, and human rights organizations, many countries have already expressed alarm on our situation. We will continuously challenge the government to own up to its flagship policies, and face the consequences of peddling militarism at the expense of people’s rights,” Palabay concluded.
UN Human Rights Council adopts the Iceland’s resolution to investigate the human rights situation in the Philippines.
MANILA — In a historic decision, the United Nations Human Rights Council adopted July 11 the Iceland’s resolution to look into the human rights situation in the Philippines.
During the 41st session of the UN HRC in Geneva, Switzerland, 18 countries voted in favor of the resolution while 14 voted against. Fifteen member-states abstained from voting.
The resolution urges the Philippine government to take all necessary measures to prevent extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances, to carry out impartial investigations and to hold the perpetrators accountable in accordance with international norms and standards.
Human rights groups in the Philippines applauded the decision.
Karapatan said the resolution “is a significant step towards accountability.”
“This is not the end-all, be-all of our efforts to exact accountability, but we take it as a critical start. This is a decision on the side of justice,” said Karapatan secretary general Cristina Palabay.
Thousands have been killed in Duterte’s “war on drugs. Karapatan data revealed there have been 145 human rights defenders killed. Since 2001, Karapatan has lost 60 of their colleagues in the line of duty.
“This systematic and state-perpetrated butchering of the Filipino people has reached international concern, and the clamor for change will only echo louder from here on,” Palabay said.
Edre Olalia, president of the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers said, “It is an initial benchmark victory of sorts in the long and arduous search for justice and brings a ray of hope that sooner or later the rampant extrajuducial killings will stop and that impunity will eventually cease to reign.”
Olalia noted that the resolution was passed amid the “the orchestrated efforts by the Philippine government to frustrate or defeat such salutary initiative.”
The decision came a few weeks before President Rodrigo Duterte delivers his third State of the Nation Address.
Palabay reiterated that the Philippines is a signatory to binding human rights treaties that allow for such mechanisms of investigation and accountability. “Duty-bearers who act contrary to their mandate of upholding human rights should expect to be made accountable,” Palabay said.
