4 December 2018

The House Committee on Human Rights approved...the Human Rights Defenders bill, a measure which will require government agencies to act on reports of human rights violation within three days, among other protective clauses for rights workers.

...Commission on Human Rights chairperson Chito Gascon welcomed the passage of the bill, describing it as a groundbreaking step not only for the Philippines but in Asia.

Congress will...be...going into Christmas break, but Montalla is optimistic that the bill will gain enough support in time despite the tight schedule and President Rodrigo Duterte’s constant threats against human rights workers who criticize his administration’s war on drugs.