News
UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders presents her report
At the 46th session of the UN Human Rights Council from February 22 to March 19, 2021, the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights, Mary Lawlor, presented her report on the situation of human rights defenders in member countries of the UN Humans Rights Council, with the...
Crackdown on activists: In “Bloody Sundays” massacre, nine activists killed by state security forces
Past Sunday, March 7, 2021, nine activists have been killed and six arrested in what has been called a massacre by the hand of state security forces. This Sunday will entry in the history books as the "Bloody Sunday". In Calabarzon, equiped with 24 search warrants,...
Amnesty for rebel groups
President Rodrigo Duterte has granted amnesty for the members of several rebel groups for the crimes they committed due to their political beliefs. The rebel groups in question are the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF),...
Amnesty International UK issues report on human rights situation
Amnesty International UK has issued a report urging the UK government to take more measures for human rights defenders worldwide. The report focuses especially on the situation in the Philippines, Afghanistan, Columbia, Egypt, Libya, Russia and Zimbabwe. In regards to...
Pedal for Press Freedom
On February 7, 2021, journalists and press freedom advocates joined together for a Pedal for Press Freedom marking the first year of detention of Tacloban-based journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio. She is being charged, like so many others, with illegal posession of...
Lumad Students “rescued” by the police
Update June 2021: In the course of the “rescue operation” of February 15, seven people (3 students, 2 teachers and 2 community leaders [referred to as “datu” in indigenous Lumad communities in Mindanao]) were arrested, which is now referred to as the “Bakwit School 7”...
Senator De Lima declared innocent in one of three trials
Senator Leila De Lima has been imprisoned since February 2017. She is being accused of being involved in illegal drug trade. De Lima is convinced that these accusations are a reaction to her investigations of Dutertes human rights violations in his bloody war against...
Journalist Lady Ann Salem is free
On March 5, 2021, the journalist Lady Ann Salem and the trade unionist Rodrigo Esparago have finally been released from prison. The accusations of alleged possession of firearms and explosives have been withdrawn and classified as weak. The media group Manila Today...
General Parlade criticised for red-tagging
General Antonio Parlade who is known for uttering accusations has accused Inquirer-journalist Tetch Torresa Tupas in a facebook post on February 2, 2021, of cooperationg with terrorists. He accused her of „helping terrorists to spread lies“. Tupas had merely reported...
Red-Tagging raises growing concerns
International human rights organisations are getting increasingly concerned regarding the red-tagging by the Philippine government. Red-tagging refers to the accusations of having a communist mindset, which, according to the Anti Terror Law of 2020 (ATA) is liable to...
Murder of Zara Alvarez 6 months ago
Almost six months have passed since the murder of Zara Alvarez on August 17, 2020 in Bacolod, Negros. We remain in deep grief and also anger. Still, there are no perpetrators identified. Impunity in the Philippines must come to an end! In this radio piece by Radio...
Updates on the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020
Update May 2022 - All petitions rejected: On March 2, 2022, the majority of the original petitioners re-filed a joint motion to review the entire Anti-Terrorism Act and some specific sections. On April 26, 2022, the Supreme Court (SC) ruled its final decision on the...
Lady Ann Salem still imprisoned
The journalist Lady Ann Salem who was detained during Duterte's wave of arrests on the International Human Rights day has still not been released. If she were to be pronounced guilty of the charges against her she would be facing several years of imprisonment. Several...
Massacre of Indigenous Tumandok
Police and military joined forces on 30th December and killed nine leaders of the indigenous Tumandok in the provinces Capiz and Iloilo. Sixteen others were arrested. The police justified the killings by stating the victims were resisting against the search and arrest...
Human Rights situation has further deteriorated during the pandemic
After four years of enormous efforts the Philippine Commission of Human rights (CHR) has finally been granted access to nearly 2000 files of killings caused by state security forces through the "War on drugs". These files merely account for 24% of the total number of...
End of accord between government and University of the Philippines
On January 18th, the Department of Defence unilaterally terminated the accord with the University of the Philippines from 1989, according to which the military has no access to their campuses. The academic institution was vilified as a "save hafen" for terrorist,...
Roundtable discussion with Maria Ressa about documantary film “A thousand cuts”
In light of the recently released documentary “A thousand cuts” which follows Maria Ressa, journalist and CEO of rappler, Christiane Amanpour talked with film maker Ramona Diaz and Maria Ressa about disinformation and its consequences for the people. The documentary...
Constant vilification of Sarah Elago
Sarah Elago, the youngest member of the Filipino Congress ever has been subject of numerous diffamation attacks during all of 2020. She has been red-tagged with the use of manipulated photographs in the social networks so she nowadays gets nervous if anybody is asking...
Inquirer reports on human rights activity of the Germany-based NGO philippinenbüro
Human rights defenders and rights activists have gathered in front of the cathedral of Cologne, Germany on 10th December. The philippinenbüro e.V. which is based in Cologne organised the protest in order to remember the many victims of human rights violations in the...
EU Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy sanctions human rights abuses
On Monday, December 7, 2020 the EU foreign ministers approved a mechanism that allows member countries to sanction individuals and organizations responsible for human rights abuses. The new mechanism, which is similiar to the US American "Magnitsky Act" gives EU...