PH gov't to UN: Stop weaponizing, politicizing human rights

MANILA - The Philippines called for an end to the "weaponization and politically motivated use of
human rights," amid continuous calls of activists and experts to investigate the current administration's
alleged abuses.

The Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement Thursday that Ambassador Enrique Manalo,
Philippine Permanent Representative to the United Nations, called for multilateral cooperation and
genuine dialogue for promotion and protection of human rights during the Third Committee of the
General Assembly in its opening session on Oct. 5.

“We seek to ensure a safe and secure environment where human rights and fundamental freedoms are
enjoyed by every Filipino, free from crime and the evil of illegal drugs,” Manalo told other delegates in
the UN.

The United Nations Human Rights Council earlier adopted a resolution that would provide technical
cooperation and capacity-building for promotion and protection of human rights in the Philippines,
which rights groups say falls short of launching an independent international probe into the human
rights situation in the country.

The resolution, co-sponsored by the Philippines and other countries, requested the Office of the High
Commissioner on Human Rights to provide technical assistance and capacity-building for “domestic
investigative and accountability measures, data gathering on alleged police violations, civic space and
engagement with civil society and the Commission on Human Rights, national mechanism for reporting
and follow-up, counter-terrorism legislation and human rights-based approaches to drug control.”

Rights groups who had been lobbying for an impartial, independent international probe since President
Rodrigo Duterte's drug war began, said the resolution does not provide meaningful actions. Amnesty
International called the resolution a “missed chance” for seeking justice.

The Duterte government has repeatedly said it upheld human rights, despite concerns raised by several
groups both in the country and abroad over alleged abuses.
US bill seeks to stop aid to PH military, police until rights abuses addressed

Palace calls proposal 'very wild'

MANILA (2ND UPDATE) – A new bill filed in the United States House of Representatives seeks to stop
American aid to the Philippine military and police until reforms are made to address alleged human
rights violations, with its author calling the Duterte administration a "brutal" regime.

The Philippine Human Rights Act (H.R. 8313), which seeks to “suspend the provision of security
assistance to the Philippines until the Government of the Philippines has made certain reforms to the
military and police forces, and for other purposes,” was introduced by Democratic Pennsylvania Rep.
Susan Wild on September 17 this year, supported by 23 other Democrat legislators.

The official US Congress website has yet to post a copy of the bill but according to the website of
Filipino-Americans advocating for its passage, the bill seeks to withhold assistance “until such time as
human rights violations by Philippine security forces cease and the responsible state forces are held
accountable.”

Introducing the bill on the floor of the US House of Representatives Wednesday, Wild referred to the
recent passage of an anti-terrorism measure in the Philippines as one of the bases for pushing for the US
bill.

“Today across the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte’s brutal regime is using the pretext of the so-called Anti-
Terrorism law to ramp up efforts targeting labor organizers, workers and political opponents. This law
allows suspects to be detained by the police or military without charges for as long as 24 days and
placed under surveillance for up to 90 days,” she said.

“In response to these abuses, I introduced the Philippine Human Rights Act, which would block US
funding for police or military assistance to the Philippines, outlining a series of basic criteria which would
have to be met in order to resume such funding,” she added.

Peaceful protests a 'fundamental human right': UN watchdog

GENEVA - As authorities worldwide grapple with swelling demonstrations over issues like political rights
and racial justice, a UN committee on Wednesday reaffirmed that protesting peacefully, online or in
person, is a fundamental human right.

The independent experts on the Human Rights Committee published a fresh interpretation of the right
to peaceful assembly, offering comprehensive legal guidance on where and how it applies and also
outlining governments' obligations.

"Recent developments, including the COVID-19 pandemic, have created unprecedented challenges" to
ensuring the right to peaceful assembly, the committee said in a statement.

"And worldwide protests in support of Black Lives Matter have underlined its importance," it added.

The committee, made up of 18 independent experts, is tasked with monitoring how countries
implement the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which under Article 21
guarantees the right to peaceful assembly.

"It is a fundamental human right for individuals to join a peaceful assembly to express themselves, to
celebrate, or to air grievances," committee member Christof Heyns, a law professor at the University of
Pretoria, said in the statement.

"It constitutes the very foundation of a democratic society."

He stressed that the right belongs to everyone, without exception.

"Everyone, including children, foreign nationals, women, migrant workers, asylum-seekers and refugees,
can exercise the right of peaceful assembly."

Speaking to AFP, Heyns said the understanding around what constitutes a gathering had evolved: "Many
assemblies today take place online... (which) is also protected by the right."

In its so-called general comment on Article 21, the committee highlighted the obligations of
governments to facilitate peaceful assemblies and to protect participants from possible abuse by
members of the public.