Villar defends senators' trip to Geneva, says its 'significant'

Senate President Manny Villar defended the trip of a number of senators to the 117th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) at the Centre international de Conferences de Geneve in Geneva, Switzerland.

Villar, member of the IPU Governing Council and president of the Philippine IPU National Group, was accompanied by colleagues Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr., Sens. Pia Compañera Cayetano, M.A. "Jamby" Madrigal, Loren Legarda, and Alan Peter Cayetano as delegation members.

The Senate President said the participation of the Philippine Senate is significant, considering that among its priority legislation are human-rights oriented.

These include: the creation of the Commission on Missing Persons that will address situations like that of Jonas Burgos; the establishment of framework of International Humanitarian Laws in the Philippines; and a revitalized Philippine Commission on Human Rights.

"We are taking part in the assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union in Geneva as part of our responsibility to the worldwide family of parliaments," Villar said.

"We hope to contribute significantly to dialogues on important international concerns especially the upholding of human rights across the globe," the Senate President said.

Earlier, a number of congressmen criticized the senators for taking a break from session early and calling their trip a junket.