News
Philippine media concerned about Meta’s termination of fact-checking in the US
The decision of the internet company Meta to stop working with fact-checkers on its social media platforms Facebook and Instagram in the US has also raised concerns among journalists and civil society organizations in the Philippines. In a statement on January 11,...
“Quad Committee” recommends charges against Rodrigo Duterte
On December 18, 2024, the so-called quad committee of the Philippine House of Representatives presented its first progress report on a joint investigation over the past months into the links between illegal drug trade, Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs) as...
Possible consequences of Sara Duterte’s death threats
On November 23, 2024, in a digital press conference on her Facebook social media channel, Vice President Sara Duterte threatened to have President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, his wife, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Martin Romualdez, killed if she herself...
UN experts condemn abuse of Philippine counter-terrorism financing laws
On August 29, 2024, five United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteurs issued a public letter condemning the Philippine government's alleged abuse of laws to combat money-laundering and terrorism financing against 27 former and active members of the non-governmental...
New task force to investigate cases of extrajudicial killings in “war on drugs”
The Philippine Department of Justice (DOJ) has set up a new task force to investigate extrajudicial killings under the former Duterte administration's so-called “war on drugs.” On November 4, 2024, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla signed Department Order No....
Former President Duterte confirms police reward system in his “war on drugs”
On November 13, 2024, former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte testified in a hearing of the so-called “Quad Committee” in the House of Representatives on human rights violations in the so-called “war on drugs” during his term of office. Duterte admitted that...
Fourth human rights dialog between the EU and the Philippines, free trade agreement talks criticized
On October 30, 2024, the fourth Human Rights Dialogue between the European Union (EU) and the Philippines took place in Manila. The subcommittee meeting on good governance, rule of law, and human rights under the EU-Philippines Partnership and Cooperation Agreement...
Police hampers investigations of Commission on Human Rights
During a Senate hearing on October 28, 2024, the Chairperson of the Philippine Commission on Human Rights (CHR), Richard Palpal-latoc, reported that the Philippine National Police (PNP) often refuses to cooperate with the CHR. The lack of access to police reports,...
Senate hearing: Rodrigo Duterte makes concessions
So far, former President Rodrigo Duterte has not participated in the hearings of the so-called “Quad-Committee” of the Philippine House of Representatives on extrajudicial killings in the context of his anti-drug campaign but made a shocking statement as part of a...
Government silent on the disappearance of activists
Filipino activists James Jazmines and Felix Salaveria Jr. have been missing since the end of August 2024. According to the human rights organization Karapatan, Jazmines worked as an IT expert for a development organization, among others; Salaveria was an enthusiastic...
Conflict between the Duterte and Marcos dynasties heats up again
In the Philippines, tensions between the influential Duterte and Marcos political families have increased again. Vice President Sara Duterte said during a press conference in Manila on October 18, 2024 that she was considering digging up the body of Ferdinand Marcos...
Police reward system for drug-related killings exposed
As part of the ongoing hearings of the so-called "Quad-Committee" of the Philippine House of Representatives to investigate human rights violations in the context of the so-called “war on drugs” under former President Duterte's administration, former police chief...
Increasing “red-tagging” of trade unionists
In a recent report, the human rights organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) warns that Philippine government officials and the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) have increasingly been harassing trade union leaders through the...
Call for reforms in the Philippine National Police
The Philippine National Police (PNP) has launched a comprehensive investigation into allegations by former Lt. Col. Jovie Espenido that a quota and reward system existed under the former Duterte administration as part of the anti-drug campaign. Espenido made this...
De Lima calls for the Philippines to return to the International Criminal Court
On October 22, 2024, Philippine politician and former senator Leila de Lima called on the Philippine government to rejoin the International Criminal Court (ICC). Speaking before the members of the four committees of the House of Representatives (“Quad-Committee”), she...
AMP 2024 Report – Human Rights in the Philippines under Marcos Jr.
Two years into President Marcos Jr.’s administration, the human rights situation in the Philippines has not improved significantly. Many members of the international community, however, are intensifying their diplomatic relations with the Philippine government. In its...
Reform of the anti-drug law required
At the Drug Policy and Law Reform Summit that took place from July 10 to 12, 2024, in Manila, the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) declared that the government supports a reform of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Law (Republic Act 9165) and wants to revise certain...
Investigation into drug-related killings links with offshore gaming operators
On August 6, 2024, the Philippine House of Representatives passed a resolution (House Resolution 1880) that provides for the formation of a new "super committee." This body combines four committees - dangerous drugs, public order and security, human rights, and public...
Philippine Human Rights Plan to start end of 2024
In a joint statement on the end of the UN Joint Programme on Human Rights (UNJP) in July 2024, the Philippine Department of Justice (DOJ) and the UN Office in Manila announced on August 8, 2024, that the Philippine government will present a comprehensive and...
SONA: Marcos Jr. says drug war is “bloodless”
On July 22, 2024, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. praised the successes of his anti-drug campaign in his third State of the Nation Address (SONA) in Manila. He referred to the arrest of 97,000 drug dealers and record quantities of seized illegal drugs worth 44 billion...