Baguio back initiatives supporting human rights defenders

City officials recently expressed their all-out support to all initiatives recognizing and protecting human rights defenders in proposed bills for the possible enactment of the Human Rights Defenders law.

Under Resolution No. 155, series of 2023, city legislators stated that there is much exigency in institutionalizing the protection of human rights and their defenders as vital cogs to a just and democratic society, thus, the need for the city government to express and show support for the same to help the hope that the expeditious approval by the House of Representatives early in the 19th Congress could hasten consideration and passage of its counterpart in the Senate and subsequently, the long awaited enactment of the Human Rights Defenders Protection law.

On October 31, 2004, during the 13th Congress of the Philippines, a resolution was introduced in the House of Representatives through House Resolution No. 00186 directing the Committee on Civil, Political and Human Rights and the Committee on Justice to jointly conduct an inquiry, in aid of legislation, into the killing of Jacinto Rashid Manahan, Jr. and the other 250 unsolved killings in Davao City since 2001 and the apparent failure of the State to protect its citizens and human rights defenders from these assaults on their rights to life and due process of law.

The council claimed that the various incidents covered by different resolutions which were not acted upon may well have compelled the filing with the House of Representatives on December 9, 2008, before the end of the 14th Congress of the Philippines, of House Bill (HB) 5600 or the Human Rights Defenders Protection Act.

While the said bill may not have been acted upon also, the council pointed out that it initiated the filing of similar versions of the bill in the succeeding Congresses for the recognition, protection and promotion of the rights of human rights defenders which became commonly or individually known and referred to as the Human Rights Defenders Bill.

In 2019, one of the proposals refiled or substituted as HB 09199 gained the support and approval on the third and final reading by the House of Representatives.

However, the 17th Congress was already about to end that while it was transmitted to the Senate after its passage, time did not allow the needed Senate action for it to become a law.

On January 17, 2022, the refiled bill in the 18th Congress as HB 10576 was again approved by the House on third and final reading and was transmitted immediately to the Senate but the latter failed to take action on the same.

In the present 19th Congress, 3 proposals on the protection of human rights defenders were refiled with the House pending as HB 00077, HB 00256 and HB 02484, while also pending in the Senate is the counterpart part Senate Bill 179 refiled in 2019.

The council stipulated that the proposed bills termed ‘human rights defenders’ will be understood to refer to any person, who, individually or in association with others, act or seek to act to protect, promote or strive for the protection and realization of human rights and fundamental freedom and welfare of the people at the local, regional, national and international levels and who are always expected to act within the bounds of the law. – Dexter A. See