POLICE STATION CHECKLIST ON HUMAN RIGHTS-BASED POLICING

(As maintained by the Human Rights Desk)

1. Number and profile of personnel with:

1. Basic and advanced training in human rights

2. Human rights modules in mandatory and special courses

3. Additional human rights seminars, workshops, and training conducted by CHR

4. Additional human rights seminars, workshop, training conducted by NGOs and

foreign organizations

2. Number of custodial detention facilities / lock-up cells inspected.

1. Are there separate facilities for men, women, and children?

2. Is there a regularly updated Database on Detainees including their complete name,

3. address, age, sex, nature of crime or offense, status Of case or investigation, date. of
inquest, release or transfer to jail, contact details of lawyer or family, etc.?

5. Are the custodial detention facilities / lock-up cells clean,

6. Are detainees confined in facilities that pose no threat to their health and safety?

7. Excessive Use of Force (EF)

3. Number and profile of complaints of alleged human rights violations such as:

1. Illegal Arrest (IA)

2. Illegal Detention (ID)

3. Extra-legal Killings (ELK) or summary executions

4. Enforced Disappearance (ED)

5. Other human rights violations

4. Number and status of alleged cases of human rights violations investigated or
handled by the police station.

5. Display of posters and information materials on Rights of Persons Arrested, Detained

or Under Investigation (R.A. 7438) at the police station and other PNP offices.

6. Display the posters inside the investigation room, near custodial detention facilities,
and other prominent locations inside the police station.

6. Activation of human rights desk and designation of human rights desk officers
(HRDOs) at the police station level including:

7. Preparation of Human Rights Desk Workflow and directory of other PNP units and
government agencies involved in human rights protection.

8. Human Rights Promotion/Protection Action Plan (police station-level)

7. Coordination with Barangay Human Rights Action Officer (BHRAO) on joint human
rights plans and activities; protective services to victims of human rights violations and
other mission-essential tasks related to human rights promotion and protection at the
community level.

HUMAN RIGHTS DESK BASIC OPERATIONAL PROCEDURES

Receiving / Taking Action on Complaints of Alleged Human Rights Violations:

1. Politely greet the complainant or any person that approaches the Human Rights
Desk. State your rank and full name, then ask the complainant or person about his
specific need or purpose for approaching your desk,

2. Through initial interview, evaluate if the complaint is about an alleged human rights
violation or a typical complaint that is supposed to be handled by other desks such as
the Investigation Desk, Women & Children"s Protection Desk (WCPD), etc.

3. Assess if the complaint is about alleged enforced disappearance (ED), extra-legal

killing (ELK), torture (TOR), illegal arrest (IA), or excessive use of force by a police
Officer and/or law enforcer (EF).
4. If the complaint is related to human rights violations cited in No. 2, get a written
statement from the complainant about the incident. Get full details of the incident,
complete name and contact details of the complainant, and ot.her pertinent information.

5. Inform the complainant that he/she will receive an update on actions taken by the
Human Rights Desk / Police Station within three (3) days. Further, inform the
complainant that the update on actions taken may be sent via phone call, text message,
email, or as a last resort, via post mail, Also provide the complainant with your official
telephone/ fax numbers, e-mail address, and other contact details

6. thank the complainant for reporting the incident alleged human rights violation.
Express reassurance that the human rights desk would closely monitor the actions that
will be taken by the appropriate police units or government agencies that will handle the
complaint or report of alleged human rights violation.

Fundamental Principles of International Humanitarian Law

1. Principle of Distinction

Parties to the conflict shall at all times distinguish between the civilian population and
combatants, and between civilian objects and military objectives and, accordingly, shall
direct their operations only against military objectives.

2. Principle of Proportionality

The actual damage that is caused by attacking a military target must not be larger than
the calculated military advantage.

3. Principle of Military Necessity

The only legitimate objective, which states should endeavor to accomplish during war, is
to weaken the military forces of the enemy; that for this purpose, it is sufficient to disable
the greatest possible number of men. (http://www.icrc.org)

Implementation of International Humanitarian Law

The 1949 Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols are international treaties
which serve as the core of international humanitarian law, a part of the body of
international law that governs the behavior of states during warfare and internal armed
conflict. However, treaties of IHL, to be universally accepted must be formally adopted
by a State through ratification or accession. After which, a State must then enact a
national legislation and take practical measures in order for the rules to be fully
effective.

The Philippines ratified the Geneva Conventions of 1949 on October 6, 1952 and
signed the following Additional Protocols on December 12, 1977: Protocol I which
applies to the protection of victims of international armed conflicts and Protocol II which
deals with the protection of victims of non-international armed conflicts. On December
11, 1986, the Philippines ratified Protocol II.

The Philippine government enacted Republic Act 9851, otherwise known as the
"Philippine Act on Crimes Against International Humanitarian Law and Genocide and
Other Crimes Against Humanity," which mandates both state and non-state armed
groups to observe international humanitarian law standards, giving victims of war
crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity legal remedy. The salient provisions of
Republic Act 9851 are as follows:

1. International law as part of the domestic law

The Philippines adopts the generally accepted principles of international law as part of
the law Of the country, including the Hague Conventions of 1907, the Geneva
Conventions on the protection of victims of war and international humanitarian law.
(Section 2d, RA 9851)

2. Universal jurisdiction of the crime

The law provides that Philippine Regional Trial Courts (RTC) shall have the original and
exclusive jurisdiction over persons who commit international crimes punishable under
this law, whether military or civilian, suspected or accused of the crimes defined and
penalized under this law. (Section 17, Chapter VIII,
3. Non-prescription of the offense

The crimes defined and penalized under this law, their prosecution, and the execution of
sentences imposed on their account, shall not be subject to any prescription. (Section
11' chapter 5 ra 9851).

4. Liability of non-state actors

The law lays down the rules which are applicable to both State and non-State actors.
Hence, CNN, MILF, MNLF, ASG and other armed threat groups in the country may also
be held individually criminally liable for grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions and
of Additional Protocol l, and for other serious violations of IHL in non-international armed
conflicts.

5. War crimes or crimes against IHL

In case of a non-international armed conflict, "war crimes" are any of the following acts
committed against persons taking no active part in the hostilities, including members of
the armed forces who have laid down their arms and those placed hors de combat by
sickness, wounds, detention or any other cause:

a. Violence to life and person, in particular, willful killings, mutilation, cruel treatment and
torture;

b. Committing outrages upon personal dignity, in particular, humiliating and degrading

treatment;

c. The meting out of sentences and the carrying out of executions without previous
judgment pronounced by a regularly constituted court.

Other serious violations of the laws and customs applicable in armed conflict, within the
established framework of international law, are as follows:

a. Intentionally directing attacks against the civilian population or against individual

civilians not taking direct part in hostilities;

b. Intentionally directing attacks against civilian objects which are not military objectives;
c. Intentionally directing attacks against buildings, materials, medical units and
transport, and personnel using the distinctive emblems of the Geneva Conventions or
Additional Protocol Ill in conformity with international law;

d. Launching an attack in the knowledge that such attack cause incidental loss of life or
injury to civilians or damage civilian objects or widespread, long-term and severe
damage to the natural environment which would be excessive in relation to the concrete
and direct military advantage

e. Launching an attack against works or installations containing dangerous forces in the

knowledge that such attack Will cause excessive loss of life, injury to civilians or
damage to civilian objects, and death or serious injury to body or health.

f. Attacking or bombarding, by whatever means, towns villages, dwellings or buildings

which are undefended and which are not military objectives, or making non-defended
localities or demilitarized zones the object of attack;

g. Killing or wounding a person in the knowledge that he/she is hors de combat

including a combatant who having laid down his/her arms or no longer having means of
defence. Has surrendered at his/her discretion’

h. Making improper use of a flag of truce, of the flag or the military insignia and uniform
of the enemy or of the United Nations, as well as of the distinctive emblems of the
Geneva Conventions or other protective signs under international humanitarian law,
resulting in death, serious personal injury or capture;

i. Intentionally directing attacks against buildings dedicated to religion, education, art,

science or charitable purposes, historic monuments, hospitals and places where the
sick and wounded are collected;

j. Subjecting persons who are in the power of an adverse party, to physical mutilation or
to medical or scientific experiments of Human Rights-Based Intelligence Operations 11
any kind, or to removal of tissue or organs for transplantati0t1' which are neither justified
by the medical, dental or hospital treatment of the person concerned nor carried out in
his/her interest, and which cause death to or seriously endanger the health of such
person or persons;

k. killing wounding or capturing an adversary by resorts to perfidy

l. Declaring that no quarters will be given;

m. Pillaging a town or place, even when taken by assault;

n. Ordering the displacement of the civilian population for reasons related to the conflict,
unless the security of the civilians involved or imperative military reasons so demand;

o. Committing outrages upon personal dignity, in particular, humiliating and degrading

treatments;

p. Committing rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, enforced

sterilization, or any other form of sexual violence;

q. Utilizing the presence of a civilian or other protected person to render certain points,
areas or military forces immune from military operations; and,

r. Committing any of the following acts:

(1) Conscripting, enlisting or recruiting children under the age of fifteen (15) years into
the national armed forces;

(2) Conscripting, enlisting or recruiting children under the age of eighteen (18) years into
an armed force or group other than the national armed forces; and,

(3) Using children under the age of eighteen (18) years to participate actively in
hostilities.

6. Genocide

"Genocide" means any of the following acts with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a
national, ethnic, racial, religious, social or any other similar stable and permanent group
such as:
a. Killing members of the group;

b. Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;

c. Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its
physical destruction in whole or in part;

d. Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; and,

e. Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.

7. Other Crimes Against Humanity

"Other Crimes Against Humanity" means any of the following acts when committed as
part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with
knowledge of the attack:

a. Willful killing;

b. Extermination;

c. Enslavement;

d. Arbitrary deportation or forcible transfer of population;

e. Imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty in violation of

fundamental rules of international law;

f. Torture;

g. Rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, enforced sterilization,

or any other form of sexual violence of comparable gravity;

h. Persecution against any identifiable group or collectivity on political, racial, national,

ethnic, cultural, religious, gender, sexual orientation or other grounds that are
universally recognized as impermissible under international law, in connection with any
act referred to in this paragraph or any crime defined in this Act;

i. Enforced or involuntary disappearance of persons;

j. Apartheid; and,

k. Other inhumane acts of a similar character intentionally causing great suffering, or

serious injury to body or to mental or physical health.