RP 10th on review list of UNHRC

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines is 10th on the list of countries up for a Universal Periodic Review (UPR) to be undertaken by the United Nations Human Rights Council and according to the participants in the pre-review process, “no one is sure what to expect.”

In a statement issued by Malacañang yesterday, it was revealed that the Philippines is among the first batch of 16 countries scheduled for review and that this would most likely be conducted in mid-April.

A workshop attended by the country representatives of the first batch of 16 was recently conducted in Geneva, Switzerland to share their questions, interpretations and plans on how to prepare for the UPR.

The participants in the workshop were one in saying that the UPR would not be used to “name and blame” countries but rather “how to improve rights promotion and protection on the ground as well as international cooperation towards this end.”

According to Philippine Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Erlinda Basilio, the Philippines was the first country to submit its documents for the forthcoming UPR, a few days before the Feb. 25 deadline.

The countries to be reviewed were required to submit written information about human rights protections and promotions on the ground.

Basilio noted that the Philippines’ document lists the government’s activities on human rights while acknowledging areas for strengthening and support and identifying specific actions for the future.

She also cited poverty alleviation and the resolution of cases involving the killing of activists and members of the media as among the top concerns of the government and non-government organizations.

The Philippines has been widely criticized for the high number of unexplained killings of activists and journalists, particularly during the term of President Arroyo.

This concern was widespread and even resulted in visits by UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings Philip Alston as well as members of the United States Congress and parliamentarians of the European Union.

In response to criticism regarding the unexplained killings, President Arroyo created the Melo Commission, an independent fact-finding body tasked to investigate the cases and to come up with recommendations on how to address the killings.

Among the recommendations of the Melo Commission that have already been implemented are the creation of special courts to try the cases of activist and journalist killings; an investigation conducted by the Department of National Defense and Armed Forces of the Philippines on the alleged involvement of military personnel in the killings; and the increase in funding for the Commission on Human Rights.

The Philippines was one of the initial 14 countries that comprised the UN Human Rights Council when it was created last year.

The UPR, on the other hand, was a result of a resolution of the UN General Assembly, mandating the HRC to “undertake a universal periodic review, based on objective and reliable information, of the fulfillment by each State of its human rights obligations and commitments in a manner which ensures universality of coverage and equal treatment with respect to all States.”