Remulla: UN rapporteur’s visit to help Phl forensic pathology
Another United Nations special rapporteur has been invited by the Philippine government to visit the Philippines next year, this time a forensic expert who the Department of Justice (DOJ) hopes can help build the capacity of local forensic pathologists.
Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said the agency invited UN special rapporteur on summary executions Morris Tidball-Binz to lend his expertise on forensic pathology early next year.
“There are special rapporteurs that are coming into our country on the state of children and another is for the issue on human rights. But there is also another one – we invited him ourselves because we want to do capacity building for our forensic pathologists in the country,” Remulla told reporters on Monday.
Tidball-Binz, a Chilean physician who specializes in forensic science, human rights and humanitarian action, has been the UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial summary or arbitrary executions since 2021.
Remulla personally met with TidballBinz last Nov. 13, ahead of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in Geneva, Switzerland last week. The DOJ chief said the rapporteur accepted the invitation.
Earlier, UN special rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children Mama Fatima Singhateh and the rapporteur on freedom of expression and media Irene Khan were also invited. Singhateh is scheduled to visit starting Nov. 28 while Khan’s visit is slated early next year.
Remulla said Tidball-Binz’s visit is intended to help the government train more forensic pathologists, stressing that there are only two licensed forensic pathologists in the country.
“Of course, if there are murders or there are deaths that are untimely in the provinces, at least they can help us with investigations. If our people are trained already in the art and science of forensic pathology, we will have experts determining the results,” Remulla said.
The justice secretary said the visit was crucial to the DOJ’s plan to install at least one forensic pathologist in each of the country’s 17 regions.
Meanwhile, Remulla also took a swipe at the groups that observed the 4th cycle UPR of the Philippines in Geneva last week, accusing them of being affiliated with communist rebels.
The Philippine UPR Watch earlier said the Philippine delegation’s “empty words and vague promises” failed to convince at least 35 countries that called on the Philippines to put a stop to human rights violations, especially summary killings.
The Philippine UPR Watch was in Geneva to observe the proceedings, especially the policy pronouncements of the Philippine delegation.
“We noticed that there are a lot of civil society organizations that were very critical of what we were doing, but these are the same organizations that only go to Europe to destroy the image of our country. I don’t think they have any agenda but to destroy our country and give our people a hard time,” Remulla said.