Aquino chided for human rights record

An alliance of human rights groups chided yesterday the Aquino administration for its alleged failure to execute development plans and frameworks to prevent the commission or at least bring down cases of abuses to tolerable levels in the country.

The Philippine Alliance of Human Rights Advocates ( PAHRA) scored the government for its failed leadership in human rights, claiming it has no human rights outline that will clamp down on the growing number of human rights abuses.

Every department, institution and office under the Chief Executive was left to its own planning that allowed the rise of corporate- backed impunity with concomitant adverse impact on the environment and climate change.

Touching on the Yolanda experience, Max de Mesa, Chairperson of PAHRA, said impunity lurks even amidst the typhoons and disasters, and also in mining areas in Manicani, Samar and in Marinduque.

De Mesa claimed that there is a continuing threat to 87,000 people posed by a toxic pond “in imminent danger of collapsing” left by Marcopper in Marinduque.

“Impunity against civil and political rights is usually rooted in the impunity against economic, social and cultural rights,” Rose Trajano, Secretary General of PAHRA said.

“The health of thousands, including children and other vulnerable people, are at grave risk with the increased building of coal plants, the source of dirty energy. Production of dirty energy from coal is only profitable to a handful of elite business people but will in the long run, wreak havoc on the people and the planet,” Trajano added.