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More than 200 human rights advocates called for the strengthening of
human rights implementation in the Philippines and the conduct of
more participatory exercises in the Pre-planning Workshop called by
the Presidential Human Rights Committee (PHRC) on Monday in Manila.
The workshop was convened to draft the
country’s second action plan for human rights.
The first action plan was drafted in 1995, but
had many “roadblocks,” notably the lack of logistics or
financial support to implement many of its provisions, said PHRC
Executive Director and Undersecretary Cecilia Quisumbing.
In the keynote message read for him, Executive
Secretary and PHRC Chair Eduardo Ermita said that in assessing and
planning for human rights promotion, there is need for a “frank,
constructive self-assessment” without looking at concerns from the
international community as “criticism.”
He stressed that comments, recommendations and
even the conflicting reports provided by different stakeholders
“are very useful to government as indicators of public opinion
which we can use as inputs in planning.”
Rosette Librea, a human rights and development
consultant of the Commission on Human Rights (CHR), presented a
framework that links governance, human rights and development.
She said that action plans have to consider all
these variables all together rather than one variable unserved or
missing to produce an improved mechanism for human rights protection
for the vulnerable sectors and a stronger culture of human rights in
the different aspects of governance, she said.
Lawyer Leila de Lima, incoming CHR chairperson,
made her first public address, saying that while the commission was
never envisioned as an implementor of plans and programs, it is a
“catalyst, reporter and watchdog.”
She promised the commission under her watch will
show “independence, credibility and transparency” and will
affirm that certain rights and standards are “non-negotiable.”
-- Nora O. Gamolo
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