Rights groups say UN reso not enough; renew call for independent probe

Rights advocates on Thursday said the United Nations Human Rights Council's (UNHRC) offer to assist the Philippines in protecting human rights is not enough amid continued violence against activists and rights workers in the country.

While acknowledging a newly-adopted UNHRC resolution, groups under the network Ecuvoice said it would only be relevant to victims and their families if policies that give rise to rights violations are withdrawn and the perpetrators are brought to justice.

Falling short of launching an independent investigation, the resolution, adopted Wednesday, requests the UN human rights chief to support the Philippines in fulfilling its international human rights obligations.

Iceland and the Philippines introduced the resolution.

The assistance will be for domestic investigative and accountability measures, data gathering on alleged police violations, civic space and engagement with civil society and the Commission on Human Rights, national mechanism for reporting and follow-up, counter-terrorism legislation, and human rights-based approaches to drug control.

PHL human rights situation

Filipino human rights groups have long called for international bodies to investigate the Philippine human rights situation amid what they say is the failure of the local justice system to hold criminals accountable.

The Duterte administration has constantly rebuffed such calls, saying domestic mechanisms are sufficient.

Last June, the government formed a panel that will review police anti-drug operations where suspects were killed, but human rights groups said it was merely an effort to appease the international community amid mounting criticism.

"Regardless of whether the government responds to the resolution or not, the premise is it's not enough. Even if it does respond, kulang pa rin," said Edre Olalia, president of the National Union of Peoples' Lawyers, at a press conference.

Senator Leila de Lima's chief of staff, Fhilip Sawali, called the UNHRC resolution "too late, too little, too weak," saying that it will not result in any concrete mechanism that can lead to the punishment of human rights violators.

He warned that technical assistance and capacity-building from the UN may be used by the government to conceal its "policy of contempt" towards human rights defenders.

"The new UNHRC resolution fails to take concrete steps towards ending the killings. It likewise fails to advance the cause of justice for the numerous victims and their bereaved families," Sawali said.

Cristina Palabay, secretary general of human rights alliance Karapatan, said the UNHRC resolution "falls short of a decisive and adequate response to the worsening human rights crisis in the country."

"We strongly believe that technical cooperation and capacity-building activities would not stop the administration’s human rights violations," Palabay said.

She said this could only be done by ending killings and other rights violations, prosecuting the perpetrators, repealing policies that she said facilitate such violations, and by conducting an independent investigation. — RSJ, GMA News