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Statement of ICHRP-Pacific Northwest, USA

ICHRP Secretariat
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45 years after Ferdinand Marcos implemented Martial Law in the Philippines and enforced a policy of cruelty against the Filipino nation, President Rodrigo Duterte has declared Martial Law over Mindanao and threatened to enact Martial law over the whole country. In the strongest terms, U.S. based members of the International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines condemn the U.S.-Duterte’s regime’s declaration of Martial law, the aggressive militarization of the whole country, and the regime’s increasingly horrific human rights record.

Amidst the campaigns of human rights defenders, lawyers, farmers and church people for just and lasting peace in the Philippines, Duterte quickly stifled peace talks with the National Democratic Front, revealing the true intentions of the regime in its three wars — the war on drugs, the war against the Moro, and the war against the National Democratic Front —  all of which ultimately become a war against the basic rights of the Filipino to land and life. An estimated 13,000 have been killed in the drug war, and as of June 30, 2017 Karapatan documented 68 victims of political killings and 842 victims of illegal arrests, nationwide. At least 416,005 individuals were displaced and 357,569 were subjected to indiscriminate gunfire and aerial bombardment.

The actions of the Duterte regime are clear. When the people launched the campaign for Kapayapaan, for just and lasting peace, the U.S.-Duterte regime launched their own campaign, “Oplan Kapayapaan,” a war against the people–a military plan based off U.S. counter insurgency programs that mimics Oplan Bayanihan and Oplan Bantay Laya–wars of his predecessors–well known for human rights violations and forced disappearances.

Duterte’s continuation of war against the people and reconstitution of Martial Law 45 years after it was first declared is evidence that the people’s movement has the tyranny of the U.S.-Philippine State on its heels. The burgeoning people’s movement in the Philippines is demonstrating not only its strength but the relentless will of the people to claim their civil, political, social, economic, and cultural rights.

Resistance is the right of the Filipino people. Solidarity is our duty.

As the Pacific Northwest chapter of the International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines, we call for the immediate lifting of Martial law and express our deepest solidarity with the Filipino people’s movement for self-determination. In place of the continuing state violence against the people, we call for the continuation of the peace talks, and particularly the discussion and implementation of the Comprehensive Agreements on Social and Economic Reforms, which holds at its core the sovereignty of the Filipino people to assert their rights, particularly the national minorities, the Moro, the women and children who bear the brunt of human rights abuses under Martial Law.

Lift Martial Law! Continue the Peace Talks! End Tyranny!

Reference: Drew Elizarde-Miller, ICHRP-PNW, dcsmiller@gmail.com

 

*The International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines is a global network of organizations outside the Philippines, concerned about the human rights situation in the Philippines and committed to campaign for just and lasting peace in the country. It aims to inform the international community about the grave human rights situation in the Philippines today. Beyond information dissemination, it calls on freedom loving peoples, organizations, political parties and governments all over the world to express their concern about the still deteriorating human rights situation in the Philippines and to help the tens of thousands of victims in their quest for justice.

Philippine UPR Delegation to hold protest rally at the UN vs. Duterte’s tyrannical rule

ICHRP Secretariat
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Philippine UPR Delegation to hold protest rally at the UN vs. Duterte’s tyrannical rule

Press Release (21 September 2017)

The 13-person delegation of the Philippine Universal Periodic Review Watch will hold a protest rally at the United Nations today as a show of support to the protest rally in Metro Manila against rising tyranny in the Philippines and to seek the support of UN member states and non-government organizations who are participating in the final session for the 2017 UN Universal Periodic Review ( UPR ) of Human Rights in the Philippines.

The protest rally at the famous Broken Chair near Palais de Nations, the venue for the 36th Session, will be participated in by different Filipino organizations who are presenting a case to the UN against the rising death toll under the Duterte administration due to his war on drugs, implementation of the US global “war on terror”, extra-judicial killing and the declaration of Martial Law in Mindanao.

The rally was planned to be conducted simultaneously with the rally in Metro Manila led by the Movement Against Tyranny which calls for a stop to the return of dictatorship in the Philippines and oppose all steps being done by the Duterte administration allies such as the impeachment process being prepared against Supreme Court Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno, the continued harassment of human rights defenders and activists.

“We appeal to the world leaders who are meeting today not to support the Duterte administration’s attack on the Filipino people and to hold his administration responsible for the hundreds of death due both to his anti-illegal drugs campaign called ‘Operation Tokhang” and politically-motivated killings under Oplan Kapayapaan,” said Roneo Clamor, spokesperson and co-head of delegation of the Philippine UPR Watch.

Delegates from the peasant sector, Lumad and Moro people will give testimonies on the impact of Duterte’s declaration of Martial Law in Mindanao and the use of military airstrikes that has caused the massive loss of lives and properties in Marawi.

The Philippine UPR Watch is composed of the 13-member delegation of rights defenders and sectoral representatives from peoples’ organizations, churches and institutions, some of whom have also been recently subjected to rights violations. They are as follows: Atty. Ephraim Cortez, National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (co-head of the delegation), Roneo S. Clamor, KARAPATAN (co-head of the delegation); members:  Eufemia Cullamat, Amirah Lidasan, Sandugo, Sharon Cabusao, Gabriela, Mary Joan Guan, Center for Women’s Resources (CWR), Eule Bonganay, Childrens’ Rehabilitation Center (CRC), Johanna Dela Cruz, National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP), Maria Teofelina Morales, wife of Bishop Carlo Morales and from NCCP, Beverly Longid, IPMSDL-RMP, Antonio Flores, Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP), Bro. Ciriaco Santiago, Angie Gonzales and  Doris Wilson of the International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines (ICHRP).#

 

References (Heads of Delegation):

Atty. Ephraim Cortez, secretary general, National Union of Peoples Lawyers, (+63) 9175465798

Roneo Clamor, deputy secretary general, Karapatan, (+63) 9997721233

Philippine UPR Watch Delegation hold meeting with Swedish Mission in Geneva

ICHRP Secretariat
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Philippine UPR Watch Delegation hold meeting with Swedish Mission in Geneva

News Release (September 20, 2017)

The Swedish Mission to the United Nations expressed concern over the increasing human rights violations perpetrated by the Duterte administration against the Filipino people. Ms. Anna Envall, head of the Swedish Mission to the United Nations held a dialogue with members of the Philippine Universal Pediodic Review (UPR) Watch to discuss the human rights situation in the Philippines.

Roneo Clamor, deputy secretary general of Karapatan, provided updates on the increasing number of abductions and killings linked to the Duterte administration’s counter insurgency and war on drugs campaigns.

Amirah Lidasan of Sandugo, a broad coalition of indigenous organizations in the Philippines, stressed that the indigenous peoples and communities face the threat of ethnocide as they are displaced from their ancestral lands because of the continuing martial law in Mindanao and military bombings of indigenous communities. Lidasan also denounced the deliberate omission of the ongoing attacks on Lumad schools in Mindanao in the Philippine government representative’s report to the Special Rapporteur on Indigenous Peoples in the afternoon of September 20.

Eule Bonganay of the Children’s Rehabilitation Center shared how Lumad school teachers who painstakingly serve the Lumad children in remote areas of Mindanao have been charged by the Duterte administration with trumped-up charges of illegal possession of firearms, arson, and child trafficking. At present, about 70% of Lumad schools had been closed or rendered non-operational because of military occupation by soldiers of the Armed Forces of the Philippine. These Lumad schools are duly recognized by the Department of Education and local government, and some had even received awards from these bodies for excellent service.

Envall expressed the mission’s support in the Filipino campaign for respect for human rights as she reiterated the importance of listening to reports from the ground which provide a clearer picture of the human rights situation in the Philippines.

The Philippine UPR Watch delegation interacted with other international human rights advocates and organizations to bring to the attention of the international community, the grim situation of human rights in the Philippines as well as gather support for the Filipino peoples’ for the struggle against the imminent return of tyrannical rule through the Duterte administration.

The Philippine UPR Watch delegation co-headed by Atty. Ephraim Cortez of the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers and Roneo Clamor of Karapatan is composed of 13 representatives from different sectoral and human rights organizations. They will continue to engage in dialogues with different Special Rapporteurs and organizations to highlight the Philippine case and campaign for the adoption of relevant provisions that address the dire human rights situation in the Philippines.#

Philippine UPR Watch

References (Heads of Delegation):
Atty. Ephraim Cortez, secretary general, National Union of Peoples Lawyers, (+63) 9175465798
Roneo Clamor, deputy secretary general, Karapatan, (+63) 9997721233

Philippine UPR Watch calls for international support to Filipino people’s campaign against tyrannical rule of Duterte administration

ICHRP Secretariat
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Philippine UPR Watch calls for international support to Filipino people’s campaign against tyrannical rule of Duterte administration

Press Release

19 September 2017

 

References (Heads of Delegation):

Atty. Ephraim Cortez, Secretary General, National Union of Peoples Lawyers, (+63)9175465798

Roneo Clamor, Deputy Secretary General, Karapatan, (+63)9997721233

 

The Philippine Universal Periodic Review (UPR) Watch calls on the member states of the United Nations Human Rights Council to express their support for the Filipino peoples’ campaign against President Rodrigo Duterte’s tyrannical rule.

In barely four months, after the UPR of the Philippines at the UN Human Rights Council last May 2017, human and people’s rights violations have spiralled, with the drug war, counter-insurgency program and martial law in Mindanao, the group said. On September 22, 2017, the recommendations made to the Philippine government on its 3rd cycle of the Universal Periodic Review will be adopted this coming 36th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council on 22 September 2017. “The Duterte regime has been totally disregarding these recommendations urging the State to protect and uphold international human rights obligations,” said Atty. Ephraim Cortez, secretary general of the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL) and  co-head of the Philippine UPR Watch delegation.

A total of 103 State parties forwarded at least 257 recommendations to the Philippine government during the 27th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council. At least thirty-four (34) States raised concerns on the continuing extrajudicial killings in the country and reminded the Philippine government to ensure prosecution and accountability of perpetrators. Eight (8) States called for an end to extrajudicial killings in line with the Duterte administration’s campaign against crime and drugs.

“However, in May 2017, after the UPR on the Philippine government, the Duterte administration openly imposed martial law in Mindanao. This despite the fact that the factual basis can’t be substantiated even when the Philippine Supreme Court came up with resolution on the constitutionality of the imposition,” Cortez added.

“After more than four decades, the Filipino people will commemorate the imposition of dictator Marcos’s Martial law on September 21, 2017 with an ongoing martial law in Mindanao. This imposition of martial law in Mindanao has emboldened the Philippine state security forces to commit more human rights violations with impunity. President Rodrigo Duterte recently threatened to impose a nationwide martial law in the country. Duterte totally disregard the clamor of the Filipino people, including that of human rights defenders and social movements whom he sees as enemies of the State. Recently, he stepped up his rants against those who have condemned and called for the justice of the victims of extrajudicial killings. He sees these groups as a hindrance in his drug war and his all-out war,” said Roneo Clamor, deputy secretary general of Karapatan and co-head of the delegation.

“We stand with the victims of extrajudicial killings and other forms of human rights violations. The stones would cry out even if the Duterte administration would want to silence them. We call on the international community, especially member States of the UN Human Rights Council, to continue and strengthen their support against tyrannical rule of the Duterte administration,” Clamor said.

The Philippine UPR Watch is composed of the 13-member delegation of rights defenders and sectoral representatives from peoples’ organizations, churches and institutions, some of whom have also been recently subjected to rights violations. They are as follows: Atty. Ephraim Cortez, National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (co-head of the delegation); Roneo Clamor, Karapatan (co-head of the delegation); members:  Eufemia Cullamat and Amirah Lidasan, Sandugo; Sharon Cabusao, Gabriela; Mary Joan Guan, Center for Women’s Resources (CWR); Eule Bonganay, Childrens’ Rehabilitation Center (CRC); Johanna Dela Cruz and Maria Teofelina Morales (wife of Bishop Carlo Morales), National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP); Beverly Longid, International Indigenous Peoples Movement for Self Determination and Liberation – Rural Missionaries of the Philippines (IPMSDL-RMP); Antonio Flores, Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP); and, Angie Gonzales and Doris Wilson, International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines (ICHRP).

Other member organizations of the UPR Watch are: Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN), Center for Trade Union and Human Rights (CTUHR), Confederation for Unity Recognition and Advancement of Government Employees (COURAGE), Cordillera People’s Alliance (CPA), IBON Foundation, Initiatives Peace Mindanao (InPEACE Mindanao), KALUMARAN, Migrante International, Moro-Christian Peoples’ Alliance (MCPA), Ramento Project for Rights Defenders-Iglesia Filipina Independiente, SALINLAHI Alliance for Children’s Concerns, KAWAGIB – Alliance for the Advancement of Moro Human Rights. ###

Independent and Peaceful Australia Network Statement on the Philippines

ICHRP Secretariat
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Independent and Peaceful Australia Network Statement on the Philippines

Australians are rightly concerned that their government is committing Special Forces to the Philippines, allegedly as advisors or trainers, in a reaction to the fighting in Marawi City. Independent and Peaceful Australia Network (IPAN) is an anti-war organisation of over 60 organisations, which has grown in the last four years in response to the positioning of a US Marine Combat Regiment and associated air forces in Darwin. IPAN held its second national conference in Melbourne on September 8-10 and called on the Australian government to abandon its support for the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) which has abjectly failed to uphold human rights, and instead, put all its efforts into programs to promote peace and justice in the Philippines and to directly sponsor the peace talks to promote genuine peace and lasting prosperity for the people.

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Whereas, a vibrant, inclusive and just social order where human rights and dignity are respected is the best defence against all forms of terrorism employing violence and fear to cower a people; and

Whereas, true peace based on justice can only be realised through building up a just society and not by the way of violence, war and terror; and

Whereas, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has promoted extra-judicial killings, violence, and direct attacks on human rights and the defenders of a justice, continuing a bloody heritage of Philippine Presidents and traditional clan based politicians; and

Whereas, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) have over the decades used violence and fear to attack human rights and communities promoting justice and genuine development; and

Whereas, vast amounts of Australian military aid, and training of Philippine military and police have only increased the violent and anti-democratic nature of the AFP and PNP, and

Whereas, Australian assistance and cooperation should be non-military and directed towards building up just and inclusive societies respecting the rule of law and human dignity as the best answer to hate, terror and conflict;

WE, the participants of the IPAN National Conference, 8 – 10 September 2017 in Melbourne, affirm our commitment to justice and peace in the Philippines over violence, hatred and war, and call on the Australian government to

  • Transform all military aid and training to development assistance directed to promoting peace based on justice;
  • Condemn the violence and injustice of the Duterte regime’s so-called war on drugs which is a war on the poor;
  • Condemn the Duterte government’s militarisation of rural communities and the counter-insurgency program which target activists, human rights advocates and indigenous Filipinos for various forms of human rights violations and extrajudicial killings;
  • Support non-government organisations in the Philippines confronting all forms of terror and violence through their vision of a just society where opportunity and the national wealth is shared fairly; and
  • Act as a good-faith collaborator in promoting genuine peace talks in the Philippines to find solutions to the basic problems on the ground as the basis of genuine, and lasting peace and prosperity.
(Image sourced from the IPAN website)
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