News Roundup 30 June 2020
Jun 30, 2020 • 3 min Read
‘Grave violations’: Bachelet presents report on Philippines to UN rights council | PHILSTAR.COM – The Philippine government’s war on drugs has resulted in serious human rights violations, including “widespread and systematic” extrajudicial killings, United Nations rights chief Michelle Bachelet said Tuesday. “Findings of the report were very serious. Law and policies countering national security threats and illegal drugs have been crafted and implemented in ways that severely impact human rights,” Bachelet said as she formally presented her office’s report on the situation in the Philippines to the UN Human Rights Council during its 44th session. “Review also finds that serious human rights violations including extrajudicial killings have resulted from key policies driving the so-called war on drugs and incitement to violence from the highest levels of government. The campaign against illegal drugs is being carried out without due regard for rule of law, due process and human rights of people who may be using or selling drugs,” she added. The UN rights chief called on the Philippines to conduct independent investigations into such “grave” violations. She also urged the council to remain active and vigilant on the situation in Philippines. “I hope the report will mark the beginning of the end of impunity for serious human rights violations in the Philippines,” Bachelet said.
Recoveries top 10,000 as COVID-19 cases in Philippines hit 37,514 | PHILSTAR.COM – More than 37,000 people in the country have been sickened by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) as President Rodrigo Duterte is set to announce new community quarantine protocols later Tuesday. The Department of Health reported 1,080 COVID-19 infections Tuesday, pushing the national caseload to 37,514. The total number of recoveries also increased to 10,233 after 277 more patients survived the disease. But the DOH said 11 more deaths related to COVID-19 were logged. This pushed the country’s death toll to 1,266.
HK bulk carrier took 3 hours to report collision with PH fishing boat | INQUIRER.NET – It took three hours for the Hong Kong-flagged bulk vessel MV Vienna Wood to report its collision with a Philippine fishing boat in the waters off Mindoro to authorities. At an online press conference, Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) commandant Vice Adm. George Ursabia Jr. said the PCG command center received the report around 1:46 a.m. of Sunday (June 28) via e-mail. The collision happened at 10:20 p.m. on Saturday (June 27), he said. Fourteen fishermen went missing after the foreign vessel collided with Philippine fishing boat FV Liberty 5 off the coast of Mamburao town in Occidental Mindoro.
NBI to oversee probe of Jolo ‘misencounter’ | Manila Bulletin – The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) decided to let the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) formally investigate the apparent misencounter between military and police personnel in Jolo, Sulu on Monday which led to the death of four Philippine Army troops. Brig. Gen. Edgard Arevalo, AFP spokesperson, said in a television interview over CNN Philippines on Tuesday that both the leadership of the AFP and PNP agreed to allow a third party unit to conduct a “separate, impartial, and independent” investigation of the incident.
NTC orders ABS-CBN affiliate Sky Cable to shut down operations | The Manila Times – The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) ordered Sky Cable Corp., an affiliate of ABS-CBN Corp., to cease and desist from operating its direct broadcast satellite service. In its order released on Tuesday, a copy of which was obtained by The Manila Times, the NTC also ordered the cable company to show cause in 10 days why the radio frequencies assigned to it “shall not be recalled for lack of the necessary congressional franchise as required by law”.
