FOREIGN Affairs Secretary Enrique A. Manalo on Wednesday reaffirmed the Philippines’ commitment to constructive dialogue and cooperation on human rights.

At the virtual briefing for the diplomatic corps, he cited the leadership role of the Philippines in creating and nurturing platforms for human rights engagement in the ASEAN region and the United Nations and in “building bridges of trust and cooperation between our region and the UN human rights mechanisms and experts.”

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) organized the virtual briefing as part of the government’s regular updating on its human rights efforts.

Secretary of Justice Jesus Crispin Remulla and Undersecretary Severo Catura of the Presidential Human Rights Committee Secretariat (PHRCS) provided progress of commitments in the areas of good governance, accountability, and the rule of law in line with the UN Joint Program on Human Rights (UNJP), which was launched in July 2021.

Remulla underscored that the government will continue its human rights commitments “with even more vigor and enthusiasm.”

He recounted, “When I took the helm of the DOJ [Department of Justice] last month, I bared plans to boost the efficiency of the country’s criminal justice system.”

He shared his discussion with DILG (Department of the Interior and Local Government) Secretary Benhur Abalos on immediate measures, including joint training and continuous learning programs for prosecutors and law enforcers in both remedial and substantive covering surveillance, procedures in conducting arrests, processing of crime scenes, and evidence preservation.

“The DOJ will be working closely with the DILG on plans to decongest our prison facilities and to implement effective rehabilitation programs for persons deprived of liberty,” according to Remulla.

As he pointed out how these priorities are entirely consistent with commitments under the UNJP, he also cited milestones in strengthening investigative capacities and improved functioning of the AO 35 Mechanism or the Inter-Agency Committee that addresses extralegal killings and other grave violations of human rights.

Among the developments include a partnership with the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary, or extralegal killings on a training program on the Minnesota Protocol on Investigation of Potentially Unlawful Death; the creation of a victim support and rehabilitation sub-working group with policy discussion and capacity-building based on trauma-informed approach; and discussions on the creation of a National Referral Pathway on accountability to streamline complaint processes and facilitate investigations.

Catura highlighted that his office is focused on the Executive department, ensuring the compliance of all government bodies with the country’s human rights obligations pursuant to domestic laws and international human rights laws. This, he pointed out, attests to the seriousness of the State in upholding human rights as a pillar of effective governance.

He stated that the line-up of major review processes in the Philippines in the next three months would be opportunities to test-drive the newly-created digital tracking tool for human rights recommendations coming from different UN mechanisms called the “National Recommendations Tracking Database”.

“The Philippines’ vast civic space is home to over 101,000 non-profit organizations of which 60,000 are NGOs [non-governmental organizations] actively engaged in various advocacies,” underlined Undersecretary Catura. “The media environment that prides itself with over 2,000 private media entities significantly reinforces the vibrant civic space we speak of.”

Two “revalidas” or constructive dialogue with Human Rights Treaty Bodies are taking place in September and October, namely on the country’s compliance to the conventions on the rights of the child and on the civil and political rights, respectively.

The Philippine government also shared that preparations are in full swing for its 4th cycle of the Universal Periodic Review in November and that it looks forward to receiving the UN Special Rapporteur on the Sale and Sexual Exploitation of Children in November this year and the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression in 2023.

In reference to the UNJP as a framework of technical cooperation on human rights, Manalo stated that its ultimate strength is that “the commitments undertaken by the Philippines under the UNJP are not extraneous to but in fact are core to the functions of the government and to its programming. Thus, it has the highest degree of national ownership that is fundamental to its effectiveness and success.”

“The UNJP breaks new ground as an innovative tool of multilateralism, providing a better option to the current fragmented UN approaches to human rights cooperation and to politicized measures that rend trust and good faith,” remarked Manalo.

Manalo underlined that the UNJP “is holistic and synergistic as it is practical, as it bridges the human rights, development, and peace pillars of the UN. It pursues an inclusive multi-stakeholder approach and demonstrates that with political will, new strategies can work to more meaningfully advance the UN development system.”