Palace tells UN special rapporteurs to respect Philippine legal system

Malacañang on Friday urged United Nations special rapporteurs to respect the Philippines’ legal system after claiming that domestic mechanisms have failed to ensure accountability in connection with the alleged human rights abuses in the country.

In a statement, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque slammed the special rapporteurs’ suggestion for the member states of the UN Human Rights Council to initiate “governmental sanctions and criminal prosecution” against Filipino officials who have committed, incited or failed to prevent human rights abuses.

“The conclusions they have reached and the sanctions they have demanded confirm the lack of impartiality that has unfortunately tainted the human rights mechanisms of the United Nations when it comes to the Duterte administration,” Roque said.

Roque maintained that the Philippines has continuously discharged its obligations to punish violations of human rights, citing legislation and mechanisms against torture and enforced disappearances, laws to enforce the international humanitarian law and penal laws.

He also said the country has a “working and independent judiciary” that is ready to hear and decide on cases related to human rights violations.

“We call on the special rapporteurs to respect our legal system and the Philippines as a sovereign state,” he said.

Malacañang has repeatedly rejected the UN’s findings on the human rights situation in the Philippines under President Rodrigo Duterte, whose campaign against illegal drugs has killed thousands of drug personalities in police operations since he assumed office in 2016. — RSJ, GMA News