UN rights chief airs concerns over Philippines

by PIA LEE-BRAGO Philstar.com

MANILA — The United Nations rights chief has outlined concerns on the Philippines, including expectation of rapid progress in prosecuting human rights violators.

Presenting his annual global report to the Human Rights Council on Tuesday, UN High Commissioner for human rights Volker Turk stated the concerns in the Philippines and 39 other countries.

He said the current human rights landscape is compounded by conflict, discrimination, poverty, shrinking civic spaces and the emergence of new human rights challenges such as the rise of artificial intelligence and surveillance.

Tackling current complex challenges requires fresh thinking and bolder political leadership to address abuses and find solutions.

In the Philippines, Türk stated that police forces need to serve and protect everyone in society.

“In the Philippines, where killings in drug-related police operations still occur, my office is working with security actors to strengthen accountability and promote human rights in drug enforcement,” Türk said.

“The Philippine government has announced steps to vet senior police officers for corruption, and I hope there will be rapid progress in prosecuting human rights violators,” he added.

The UN Human Rights Council session focused on a number of situations that are of particular concern and statements in relation to country situations throughout this session were delivered.

“While I welcome recent acquittals of human rights defenders, there must be an end to other politically motivated charges and a safer environment for civil society,” Türk noted.

Last year, the Philippines held dialogues with human rights committees and participated in an enhanced interactive dialogue with the Council. The Philippines had accepted 215 out of the 289 recommendations received at the Universal Periodic Review, giving assurance that “extrajudicial killings had never been, and would never be, a state policy.”

The Philippine government rejected the International Criminal Court (ICC)’s decision to resume investigations over alleged crimes committed during the anti-illegal drug campaign.

During a visit in Manila last month, members of the European Parliament said that allowing the ICC to investigate the Philippines’ drug war is the “perfect way” to cooperate and demonstrate human rights commitment. 

Senate panel releases ndings on airport shutdown

by PAOLO ROMERO Philstar.com

MANILA — The government should put up an air traffic management system of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in a more secure location, ensure compliance with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards and immediately establish the proposed Philippine Transportation Safety Board (PTSB) to ensure the safety of air passengers, a report of the Senate public services committee has recommended.

Sen. Grace Poe, chair of the committee, delivered on Tuesday, March 7 a summary of the report of her panel, which conducted a series of hearings on the New Year’s Day closure of the country’s airspace for about 10 hours after the NAIA’s Communication, Navigation and Surveillance Systems/Air Traffic Management (CNS/ATM) system operated by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) shut down, displacing some 60,000 passengers and disrupting at least 300 flights.

“The Jan. 1 ‘systems failure’ was indeed a confluence of factors and errors. Experts likened it to the planets aligning, albeit with an unfortunate consequence. This is a rare event, but we know it can happen, and will happen again if we’re not going to act on the problems of the country’s air traffic system,” Poe told the plenary.

“There is much work needed for a better system. It is my earnest hope that through our investigative work, Congress will be able to assist CAAP in providing a system where travel in our airspace is no longer shut down by causes which could have been avoided,” she said.

She called for the immediate upgrade of the CAAP’s technical capacity and critical equipment in the country’s airports to avert glitches.

These should be complemented with the rollout of sufficient engineering guidelines and training of accredited engineers who will man the system, she said.

The shutdown of the CNS/ ATM of the CAAP was traced to a circuit breaker that shorted after the system’s uninterruptible power supply failed to work.

Poe reiterated the panel would not adopt as of now a punitive direction on its findings or recommend criminal prosecution of CAAP and other concerned officials, stressing public safety as its primary goal.

“Accountability will follow after we’ve laid down safety measures for our air passengers,” she said.

Among the committee’s other recommendations are setting up of another CNS/ATM in an “independent” location, fast-tracking of feasibility studies on the proposed privatization of the NAIA’s operations, immediate compliance by CAAP with recommendations of the ICAO, amendment of CAAP charter to improve efficiency and transparency and passage of relevant bills such as PTSB, Philippine Airports Authority Act and Air Passengers Bill of Rights.

Meanwhile, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) has recommended the separation of regulatory and operational functions of several attached agencies.

During Tuesday’s Kapihan sa Manila Bay press briefing, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said they have recommended the separation of the regulatory and operational functions of the CAAP, Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) and Philippine Ports Authority.

“We support that, because the CAAP and MIAA, they are both operators and regulators. So, we really want to split these functions up,” Bautista told reporters in Filipino.

He, however, said legislation is needed for this.

Under their recommendations, the DOTr will only have oversight functions over the government-owned and controlled corporations. 

by RED MENDOZA ManilaTimes.net

VICE President Sara Duterte has pushed for reforms in the country's electoral system while also calling for an end to violence against elected officials. During her speech at the National Election Summit organized by the Commission on Elections in Pasay City on Thursday, March 9, Duterte said that she was "pleased" to join in a gathering that sought ways to safeguard the integrity of the election process in the digital age.

"The presence of every esteemed speaker and stakeholder across different levels of governance in today's National Election Summit demonstrates our dedication to upholding the Filipinos' right to vote and harnessing the critical role of technology in promoting responsible voting," Duterte said.

She also welcomed the integration of voter's education in the country's K-12 program to help prepare Filipino youth with the ability to discern and engage responsibly in the democratic process.

"By instituting civic education in youth- and nation-building, we encourage the involvement of an empowered citizenry guided by Filipino values, discernment, and knowledge that are crucial in cultivating a culture of participative democracy," Duterte said.

VICE President Sara Duterte has

Vice President Sara Duterte PNA photo pushed for reforms in the country's electoral system while also calling for an end to violence against elected officials.

During her speech at the National Election Summit organized by the Commission on Elections in Pasay City on Thursday, Duterte said that she was "pleased" to join in a gathering that sought ways to safeguard the integrity of the election process in the digital age.

"The presence of every esteemed speaker and stakeholder across different levels of governance in today's National Election Summit demonstrates our dedication to upholding the Filipinos' right to vote and harnessing the critical role of technology in promoting responsible voting," Duterte said. She also welcomed the integration of voter's education in the country's K-12 program to help prepare Filipino youth with the ability to discern and engage responsibly in the democratic process.

"By instituting civic education in youth- and nation-building, we encourage the involvement of an empowered citizenry guided by Filipino values, discernment, and knowledge that are crucial in cultivating a culture of participative democracy," Duterte said. 