Human Rights Issues: A Growing Social Concern for Filipinos

The issue of human rights in the Philippines has become a growing concern for all peace loving Filipinos. Those who were born before the advent of martial law in the country will tell you the inhuman and sometimes cruel treatment that some Filipinos have suffered under the martial law regime. Human rights were not in the vocabulary of most Filipinos during those times.

When Filipinos had a taste of their newfound freedom under President Cory Aquino, they rejoiced and became proud citizens of the country. They have shown the world that they are capable of overthrowing an oppressive regime through non-violent means.

Years later they realized the need to protect their new-found freedom. There was an urgent need to preserve the gains of the new order and one of these gains is the preservation and protection of the basic human rights of every citizen of the country. And so the government enacted a law creating the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) under the 1987 constitution.

It has been almost 20 years since the CHR was constituted. But its progress and accomplishments leave much to be desired. It was only now that a new kind of interest and public awareness is being felt by the CHR organization. This new interest may be attributed to the very active and consistent stance of the newly appointed Chairperson of Human Rights in her persistent effort to make the human rights agency responsive to the needs of the citizens particularly those who are oppressed and have less in life. The new CHR is headed by Atty. Leila de Lima, a former election and human rights lawyer.

One of the reasons for the disappointing accomplishment of CHR is the lack of funding to support the programs of the organization. Recently, the new Chairperson, Atty. Leila de Lima, has requested congress to provide more funding for the agency to carry out its expanded mandate. She intends to set up a new Crime Laboratory within the organization and hire more competent personnel and lawyers who will help in the prosecution of human rights violations including extra judicial killings and disappearances, torture, arbitrary arrests and detention.

With the active and enthusiastic leadership of Atty. Leila de Lima, Filipinos can now look forward to an organization that is truly responsive to the needs of the citizenry in the area of human rights preservation and protection.