THE leader of the opposition bloc at the House of Representatives yesterday said President Marcos’ vow to fully respect human rights will be put to the test with his refiling of the proposed “Human Rights Defenders Protection Act.”
Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman said the chances of House Bill No. 77 becoming a law under the 19th Congress depends on the sincerity of the new President.
Before he assumed office, Marcos made a commitment last month, during a meeting with United Nations resident coordinator in the Philippines Gustavo Gonzalez, to respect and protect human rights.
The regime of his father, the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr., became infamous for blatant human rights abuses on activists and suspected dissidents, including journalists and detractors.
Lagman said he refiled the measure as House Bill No. 77 because the “emergence of human rights defenders (HRDs) is both an indictment and (a) symptom of the failure and neglect of the government to fully protect, promote, and fulfill human rights.”
Identical bills were passed on third and final reading in the House of Representatives during the 17th and 18th Congresses but were not acted upon by the Senate for lack of time.
“HRDs are surrogate defenders due to the government’s default in its primary obligation as the principal protector of human rights under the Constitution,” said Lagman, a veteran lawyer-lawmaker.
House Bill No. 77 also seeks the creation of a “human rights defenders protection committee,” the members of which shall be appointed by the Commission on Human Rights.
The committee’s duties include, among others, the following: protect HRDs from intimidation and reprisals; ensure accountability for acts of intimidation and reprisal; facilitate and promote inter-agency and inter-department coordination to prevent, protect from, investigate, and ensure accountability for acts of intimidation or reprisal; investigate all forms of violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms of human rights defenders; publicly acknowledge and promote the legitimate and important role, activities and work of human rights defenders; consult regularly and work closely with human rights defenders in the implementation of the Act.
