By Roy Mabasa

Ten human rights experts on Friday called on the United Nations to set up an independent probe into human rights violations in the Philippines, citing a sharp deterioration in the situation of human rights across the country, including sustained attacks on human rights defenders.

“Given the scale and seriousness of the reported human rights violations we call on the Human Rights Council to establish an independent investigation into the human rights violations in the Philippines,” the independent experts said in a statement.

They were referring to the body made up of 47 UN Member States elected by the UN General Assembly.

The experts group said they have recorded a “staggering number” of unlawful deaths and police killings related to the war on drugs campaign of the Duterte Administration, as well as killings of human rights defenders.

“Very few independent and effective investigations have taken place, independent media and journalists are threatened, the law has been weaponized to undermine press freedom, and the independence of the judiciary is undermined,” the experts said.

They are also “extremely concerned” over what they described as high number of killings reportedly being carried out across the country in an apparent “climate of official, institutional impunity.”

“In the past three years, we have repeatedly brought to the attention of the Government cases alleging a range of gross human rights violations, such as extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, including of children, persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples, trade union and land right activists,” they said.

Those cases, they added, also included allegations of arbitrary detention, torture or inhuman or degrading treatment, gender-based violence against women human rights defenders, attacks against the independence of judges and lawyers, freedoms of expression and of assembly, as well as people’s right to food and health.

“Sadly these cases are just the tip of the iceberg with many more cases being reported regularly,” the group said.

The rights experts who issued the call were Agnes Callamard, Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions; Meskerem Geset Techane, Chair of the Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and in practice; Hilal Elver, Special Rapporteur on the right to food; Michel Forst, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders; David Kaye, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression; Clément Nyaletsossi Voulé, Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association; José Antonio Guevara Bermúdez, Chair-Rapporteur, Working Group on Arbitrary Detention; Dainius Pῡras, Special Rapporteur on the right to health; Victoria Lucia Tauli-Corpuz, Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous people; Dubravka Šimonović, Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences; and Diego García-Sayán, Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers.

“It is time for the Human Rights Council to take action against these sustained attacks on human rights defenders and independent watchdog institutions,” the experts said.

They pointed out that in many incidents the alleged perpetrators of killings are members of the armed forces, paramilitary groups or individuals linked to them.

“Instead of sending a strong message that these killings and harassment are unacceptable, there is a rising rhetoric against independent voices in the country and ongoing intimidation and attacks against voices who are critical of the Government, including independent media, human rights defenders, lawyers and journalists,” they said.

They argued that no less than President Rodrigo Duterte himself has publicly intimidated human rights defenders, UN Special Rapporteurs and even the Supreme Court judges.

They likewise cited Duterte for publicly degrading women through sexist statements, has incited violence against alleged drugs pushers and others, and threatened to bomb the schools of the Lumads in Mindanao.

“The Government has shown no indication that they will step up to fulfill their obligation to conduct prompt and full investigations into these cases, and to hold perpetrators accountable in order to do justice for victims and to prevent reoccurrence of violations. There are now thousands of grieving families in the Philippines. We call on the international community to do everything possible to ensure there will be no more.”

On the Philippine withdrawal from the International Criminal Court last March, the experts said: “This is the last of many actions demonstrating that the Government is seeking to evade scrutiny and reject accountability,” they said, noting repeated personalized attacks on independent international actors and undermining their credibility.”