Palace says gov’t batting for more expansive view of rights

Salvador Medialdea

So who says the Duterte administration has no respect for human rights?

According to Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, rights-related programs of government agencies have a more expansive view of human rights and are aimed at improving the lives of vulnerable sectors of society.

“We trust that this year’s observance of the National Human Rights Consciousness Week and the International Human Rights Day will be an opportunity for a higher appreciation of and support for the broader field of human rights that seeks to uplift the lives of people and communities,” said Medialdea, who chairs the Presidential Human Rights Committee.

The programs are part of government efforts to help the marginalized, he added.

“We acknowledge these programs not simply as individual agency initiatives, but a collective undertaking to present human rights as a means by which government effectively responds to the needs of the country’s vulnerable sectors,” said Medialdea, adding that these sectors include women, children, persons with disability (PWDs), the elderly, indigenous peoples, migrant workers and communities in crises due to disasters.

Medialdea also cited the Philippine National Police’s mobile apps on law enforcement operation procedures and  other rights-oriented government programs, among them the orientation seminar on relevant human rights treaties for indigenous peoples groups and the workshops on labor relations and the safety of employed youth.

He also mentioned the drafting of human rights-based guidelines for the construction of gender-responsive temporary shelters for disaster survivors.

The Executive Secretary took note of the 18-day campaign to end violence against women, as well as a photo exhibit on PWDs and a film showing on the plight of overseas Filipino workers.

The Duterte administration has been under fire from various groups because of the thousands killed in its war on illegal drugs.  The President however denied ordering the police to execute drug suspects, and described international parties that criticized the killings as meddling in Philippine affairs.