Activists are in Geneva seeking international help to convince the government to address alleged military-led human rights violations. The “lackluster performance” of the government in prosecuting and putting human rights violators in jail has continued to foster a culture of impunity in the Philippines, human rights activist Cristina Palabay said today on the sidelines of the 19th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva. She is among a delegation which includes members of the Action Network Human Rights Philippines, Amnesty International and Franciscans International. The delegation has been busy meeting various NGOs, expat communities and diplomats. Palabay criticized the government's latest counter-insurgency plan “Oplan Bayanihan” which she said is a continuation of a discredited one launched by former president Gloria Arroyo. “A continuum exists that perpetuates the same brand of terror, however cloaked with buzzwords such as ‘human rights,’ ‘peace’ and ‘development’ and ‘security sector reform’,” she said. These programs have done nothing but legitimize the militarization of communities which have already resulted in harassment, forced evacuations, torture, and sexual abuse. She also cited several high-profile cases that remain unresolved, such as the disappearance of student activists Sherlyn Cadapan and Karen Empeno in Bulacan province in 2006 and the killing of Italian priest Fausto Tentorio in Mindanao last year. Though most of these cases happened before the present government’s term, Palabay lamented its “failure” to put a stop to these rights abuses. She pointed to Major-General Jovito Palparan, who is blamed for numerous disappearances, acts of torture, and deaths of political activists. Though the government has recently succeeded in filing abduction charges against him, Palparan remains at large, she said.
