Human Rights Crisis in the Philippines: The HRC and its responsibility to ensure accountability

Since President Rodrigo Duterte assumed office in June 2016, the human rights situation in the
Philippines has undergone a dramatic decline.

In July 2019, Human Rights Council resolution 41/2 mandated the High Commissioner to prepare a comprehensive written report on the situation of human rights in the country. The report, published on 4 June 2020, found that extrajudicial executions committed in the context of the “war on drugs” appeared to be “widespread and systematic”. The report verified the killings of 208 human rights defenders, journalists and trade unionists between January 2015 and December 2019” 1 and detailed an ongoing crackdown on civil society space and the media.

In this context, on 27 August 2020, a coalition of over 60 human rights organizations working at national and international level launched a call for the UN Human Rights Council to mandate an independent international investigation into extrajudicial killings in the context of the “war on drugs” and other human rights violations committed since 2016 in the Philippines as well as the role of the Human Rights Council to ensure accountability.

This event, to be held virtually on Zoom, will provide an opportunity for representatives of states, civil society and other stakeholders to discuss the next steps for the UN Human Rights Council in addressing the human rights crisis in the Philippines.

Date: 22 September 2020

Time: 10:00 AM (GMT+2)

Platform: Zoom

Speakers:
• Nymia Simbulan, PAHRA
• Cristina Palabay, Karapatan
• Rachel Chhoa-Howard, Amnesty International
• Agnes Callamard, UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions
• Laila Matar, Human Rights Watch

Moderator: Stella Anastasia, OMCT

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Please click here to access the event description and registration details.