HUMAN RIGHTS DATA IMPROVES, BUT CIVIL SOCIETY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MANILA 002737 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR EAP/MTS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PHUM ELAB PGOV RP SUBJECT: HUMAN RIGHTS DATA IMPROVES, BUT CIVIL SOCIETY STILL CRITICAL REF: A. MANILA 2103 (DEMONSTRATING COMMITMENT TO STOP KILLINGS) ¶B. MANILA 1759 (COURT CONVICTS SOLDIER FOR DISAPPEARANCES) ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: At a December 10 celebration of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, human rights advocates and the Philippine government's top human rights watchdog delivered mixed analyses on the current human rights situation in the Philippines. Advocates criticized the government's inability to prosecute the most grave human rights abuses, but acknowledged that the total number of abuses -- particularly extrajudicial killings -- had declined significantly since peaking in 2006. Participants praised the aggressive investigations of the Commission on Human Rights under Chairperson Leila De Lima, who assumed office in May. De Lima said that, despite continued human rights violations, sometimes by state actors, she did not believe the government had a specific policy of encouraging human rights abuses against political activists or journalists. The Ambassador's well-received message of support, covered by major newspapers, urged all participants to play a role in protecting and promoting respect for human rights. Government officials and NGOs during the forum, and on talk shows later that evening, repeatedly cited the U.S. Department of State Human Rights Report as an authoritative source of information on the human rights situation in the Philippines. END SUMMARY. CIVIL SOCIETY SEEKS CONVICTIONS FOR ABUSES -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Philippine civil society groups and government officers on December 10 offered mixed reviews of the human rights situation in the Philippines at a forum hosted by the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) and the Philippine Working Group for an ASEAN Human Rights Mechanism. Speakers and audience members from NGOs said that the weak response by law enforcement officials and the lack of convictions for human rights abuses encouraged impunity for state actors who may be involved in human rights violations, especially extrajudicial killings (EJKs). The head of the largest and most vocal anti-government human rights group, Karapatan, lamented that the government appeared to be resorting to arrests and illegal detentions to silence activists and had yet to obtain more than a handful of convictions for EJKs. Speakers at the forum condemned the displacement of Mindanao's Muslim population and alleged abuses committed against them, a consequence, they said, of the military's ongoing pursuit of Muslim rebel forces in the region. BAR ASSOCIATION DOCUMENTS DECLINE IN KILLINGS -------------- ¶3. (SBU) At a separate event on December 12, an audit report funded by the Asia Foundation for the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, the national bar association, found that 121 of 405 human rights cases documented at the CHR and at Integrated Bar chapters for the period January 2001 to August 2008 qualified as EJKs. For purposes of the audit, the Integrated Bar defined an EJK as a killing that occurred because of the political affiliation of the victim or with the involvement or acquiescence of state agents. According to the Integrated Bar, there were 26 killings in 2005, 48 in 2006, 11 in 2007, and 3 through August 2008. The report's authors made recommendations for preventing and prosecuting human rights abuses, including granting quasi-judicial authority to the CHR, which the CHR is already seeking through a bill in Congress that would grant it some prosecutorial powers. The head of Karapatan, present at both the forum and the Integrated bar events, agreed that the number of EJKs had in fact declined since peaking in 2006. AMBASSADOR SHOWS U.S. SUPPORT FOR RIGHTS ADVOCATES -------------- -------------- ¶4. (SBU) The Ambassador delivered an uplifting message of support to those gathered, commending NGOs, labor leaders, journalists, and religious groups for the roles they play in protecting and promoting human rights. Security forces also have important roles to play, the Ambassador said, in investigating abuses and holding violators accountable. While she noted the ideals set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights might be difficult to achieve, the Ambassador emphasized that it is nonetheless imperative for all society to work toward them. Responding to press MANILA 00002737 002 OF 002 questions after her remarks, the Ambassador urged the government to do more to hold perpetrators of human rights abuses accountable for their actions. CHR: NO SPECIFIC GOVERNMENT POLICY TO ENCOURAGE ABUSES -------------- -------------- ¶5. (SBU) While NGOs criticized the government's overall response to human rights abuses, participants heaped praise on CHR Chairperson Leila De Lima for her aggressive approach to investigating alleged abuses by state actors. De Lima expressed dismay at the number of killings and disappearances that continue to happen, many of which the CHR ascertained were committed by members of the security forces. However, De Lima said that she did not believe the government had a specific policy of encouraging human rights abuses against political activists or journalists, echoing the position of UN Special Rapporteur Philip Alston, who, in his April 2008 report, ascribed the government's tolerance of human rights abuses to complex institutional problems, skewed priorities in the justice system, and the military's broad counterinsurgency strategy. Based on the Commission's analysis, she said, such abuses were often committed by lone actors, without explicit state support. ¶6. (SBU) Other areas of investigation at the CHR included the killings of street children in Davao, forced evictions of informal urban settlers by the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, internal displacement of civilians in western Mindanao, and violations of children's rights. Regarding the October arrests of well-known political activists, De Lima said the CHR would conduct hearings for public prosecutors to explain the basis for the arrests. The Department of Justice was being helpful as the CHR looked at these cases, but De Lima admitted these investigations were difficult because they involved the government's "internal checks and balances" on matters of law enforcement. THE HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT, AN AUTHORITATIVE SOURCE -------------- --- ¶7. (SBU) NGO speakers at the forum cited the State Department's Human Rights Report on the Philippines in their remarks, reflecting the document's importance as an authoritative reference tool for human rights advocates. In a television interview later that evening, De Lima and her ABS-CBN interviewer referred to the Report's section on EJKs, noting the distinctions between abuses committed by state actors and "security forces," one of the terms used in the Report to incorporate the concept of paramilitary organizations not under the direct control of government forces. COMMENT -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Absent further progress in the prosecution of human rights abuses, Philippine civil society groups are not likely to temper their criticism of the government, even though EJKs and enforced disappearances are on the decline compared to previous years. Most groups do not view incremental, year-to-year improvements in the human rights situation as serious progress; instead, they focus on the number of total killings since President Arroyo assumed office in 2001, though such killings have been prevalent for most of the Philippines' modern history. Working within a constrained budget and a broad mandate under appointment by President Arroyo -- who is viewed by a large part of the human rights community as anathema to their values -- the CHR's chairperson and commissioners could find it increasingly difficult to mediate between militant civil society groups, who resent being targeted for alleged ties to rebel Communist forces, and certain government institutions, like the Armed Forces of the Philippines, which, according to the CHR, only reluctantly cooperate with human rights investigations. Forums like the one attended by the Ambassador will be important for elevating the CHR's perceived status within the government and making civil society groups feel like they are part of the solution to human rights abuses, and not just part of the problem. KENNEY