CHR affirms UN report on attacks vs. human rights defenders

The Commission on Human Rights on Thursday said that the government must ensure the protection of human rights defenders following a report from the United Nations on their stigmatization in the Philippines.

"We call on the government, in performance of their duty, to protect everyone and that they must also protect the rights of human rights defenders," CHR spokesperson Jacqueline de Guia said in an interview.

The statement from De Guia comes after United Nations special rapporteur Michel Forst called on the government to end its attacks against human rights defenders and recognize their work instead. 

In the latest World Report, Forst said the Philippine's war on drugs "has created a climate of insecurity and impunity for extrajudicial killings that affect human rights defenders."

Forst also urged the government to stop the stigmatization of human rights defenders but instead recognize the legitimacy and importance of their work.

De Guia said the CHR found threats against human rights defenders started since the 2009 Maguindanao massacre and continues today in the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte, mostly against journalists and members of the academe.

Human rights groups have often drawn Duterte's ire for criticizing his bloody war on drugs, but De Guia said the government should look at them as partners in its efforts to protect human rights in the country.

"Human rights defenders must not be looked upon negatively, but rather as supporters of the government in the fulfillment of their human rights obligation," she said. — BM, GMA News