UN rapporteur Callamard is ‘top LP consultant,’ says edited Wiki entry

The Wikipedia entry for Agnes Callamard, United Nations special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings, was edited to read that “she is a highly paid consultant of the Liberal Party” in time for her unofficial visit to the Philippines.

Under the subject Agnes Callamard, the Wikipedia entry now partly says: “She is a highly paid consultant of the Liberal Party of the Philippines dedicated into overthrowing one of the best President (Duterte) the country has ever had.”

Wikipedia entries are “written collaboratively by largely anonymous volunteers who write without pay. Anyone with Internet access can write and make changes to Wikipedia articles, except in limited cases where editing is restricted to prevent disruption or vandalism.”

Callamard is in the country to participate in a two-day discussion on issues of illegal drugs. The forum is organized by the Free Legal Assistance Group (FLAG).

She was also spotted during the 30th anniversary celebration of the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) Thursday night.

Callamard, who will be in the country until Monday, May 8, repeatedly clashed with President Rodrigo Duterte over the administration’s war on drugs.

Callamard was invited several months ago by the government to conduct an investigation into  the alleged extrajudicial killings amid the anti-narcotic crackdown.

But Duterte had set several conditions on the visit, including a public debate. Callamard countered that the conditions violated UN's Code of Conduct and terms of Reference for country visits.

Last December, the Philippine government decided to cancel the visit.

An official of the Department of Foreign Affairs, meanwhile, questioned the motive behind Callamard’s visit, which coincided with the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of state-parties' human rights situation, which was held in Geneva, Switzerland.

DFA Spokesperson Robespierre Bolivar said the Philippine delegation led by Deputy Executive Secretary Menardo Guevarra and Senator Alan Peter Cayetano even asked for a meeting with Callamard on the sidelines of the UPR.

"If she has indeed arrived in PHL at this time, this puts her motives and sincerity in question especially since the country will be undergoing the UPR review in the next few days and the country's HR [human rights] officials are all in Geneva and have even sought a meeting with her there," he said.

"It's unfortunate that the Philippine delegation to the UPR will not be able to meet her in Geneva. The date for the Philippines' review under the UPR process has been set some time ago and she is aware of this," he added. —LBG, GMA News