Palace urged to act on rights violations amid EU threat to revoke tariff perks

Gabriela party-list Representative Arlene Brosas on Thursday called on Malacañang to address the human rights violations raised by the European Parliament recently instead of just "smugly" challenging them to revoke the country's exports tariff exemption.

“The refusal of the Malacañang Palace to address the EU Parliament’s resolution is a clear sign of guilt," Brosas said in a statement.

"It speaks volumes about President Duterte’s direct hand over the worsening human rights situation in the country through his official pronouncements and directives,” Brosas added.

The European Parliament is pushing for the revocation of the Philippines' exports tariff exemption due to the "deteriorating" human rights situation in the country.

In a resolution dated September 17, the European Union’s legislative assembly said that “given the seriousness of the human rights violations in the country, calls on the European Commission, in the absence of any substantial improvement and willingness to cooperate on the part of the Philippine authorities, to immediately initiate the procedure which could lead to the temporary withdrawal of GSP+ (Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus) preferences."

Under the GSP+  —a mechanism that gives developing countries the privilege of exporting zero-duty merchandise to EU-member states  —some of Philippine exports to Europe are benefitting from tariff breaks.

But presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said the country could not do anything should the European Commission heed the call of the European Parliament to slap economic sanctions on the Philippines.

“Kung gusto nila dagdagan ang pahirap ng sambayanang Pilipino sa panahon ng pandemya, so be it. We will accept that as history repeating itself,” Roque said.

Brosas said the suspension of the country's GSP+ status "would undoubtedly have significant effects on the Philippine economy especially amid the pandemic," she said.

"At this point, Duterte’s refusal to address his crimes against humanity is his defense mechanism over the glaring rights abuses against quarantine violators, activists and journalists that have persisted amid the pandemic,“ she added.

Meanwhile, ACT Teachers party-list Representative France Castro also slammed Malacañang for saying that the United Nations (UN) cannot do anything if the Philippines will disallow the conduct of investigations into the human rights situation in the country.

Castro said that the Palace's remark has only shown that the Duterte administration is biased against human rights monitors, the UN, its rapporteurs, and the "very concept of human rights."

"If the administration is innocent of political and tokhang extrajudicial killings and of various modus of harassment against progressives such as terrorist-tagging, then it should have no qualms about clearing itself of the charges under the UN resolution," she said.

"President Duterte should welcome an international probe. What are you so afraid of? What are you hiding? The direct and indirect hand of the administration in the killings and maimings? The illegal use of public funds for malicious terrorist-tagging activities?" she added.

Castro maintained that the administration cannot use sovereignty as an "excuse" to disallow the UN probe.

"It should be reminded that sovereignty resides in the people, and ultimately, it is the people who filed complaints—not just in the UN—and secured initial victories in the form of international condemnation on the Philippine human rights situation," she said. —LDF, GMA News