Australia supports establishment of PH forensic institute

The Australian government on Tuesday expressed its support for the establishment of an independent and operational forensic institute in the Philippines to further strengthen the justice system in the country.

Australian Ambassador to the Philippines Hae Kyong Yu announced this during the launch of the 4th Philippine Human Rights Plan (PHRP4), which was also attended by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin and other government officials.

“This is important because forensic tools are transformative. They provide irrefutable evidence, speed up case resolutions, and strengthen accountability mechanisms,” Yu said.

“This project, can I share with you, is very well advanced. And it’s aimed at empowering the justice system to investigate and document cases thoroughly, and of course it will build the capacity of a new cohort of doctors trained in international standards in forensic medicine,” she added.

“Even though I’ve got only seven months to go in my tenure as the Australian Ambassador to the Philippines…I am absolutely determined and keen to see this project fully implemented to yet again further advance the Philippines' actions on human rights,” Yu said.

The PHRP4 was the latest iteration of the Philippines’ National Human Rights Action Plan, designed to guide and strengthen efforts in advancing human rights across various sectors.

The plan was one of the three pledges made by the Philippine government in December 2023 during the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in Geneva, which highlighted the government’s commitment to upholding human dignity, equality, and freedom in the country. — VBL, GMA Integrated News