Philippine, Nepal commissions agree to work together in promoting human rights
Published Jun 20, 2019 09:14 pm
By Chito Chavez
The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) of the Philippines and the National Human Rights Commission of Nepal (NHRC Nepal) have strengthened their ties to come out with measures to further uplift people’s rights.
CHR Chairperson Chito Gascon
(Jansen Romero / MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO) Both human rights agencies have vowed to exchange inputs in coming up with common initiatives to promote human rights specifically with regards to the context of migration. CHR Chairperson Chito Gascon has stressed the common issues and other matters that CHR and NHRC Nepal share particularly on being an “A” status National Human Rights Institution (NHRI) and having both signed cooperation agreements with the National Human Rights Committee of Qatar (NHRC Qatar). “With our common experiences and issues, we need to discuss strategies so our people are protected. We know that it’s one thing to have something on paper versus the day-to-day context of the people we seek to protect and defend. Let’s work together so we can demand and follow through with commitments and hold people to account,” Chairperson Gascon said. He added that among the common approaches that can be explored are mechanisms of sharing information, the quick response and urgent alerts, including avenues of partnerships. In response, Honorable Commissioner Sudip Pathak of NHRC Nepal expressed their country’s interest in strengthening cooperation particularly in protecting migrant rights. “We are very much sincere in protecting migrant rights. We hope that we will develop our relationship in these areas. We want to work with you in developing protection mechanisms in collaboration with government and civil society, he said. Pathak also expressed their intent to share Nepal’s experience and practices particularly in implementing their Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with NHRC Qatar as well as their eagerness to learn about the best practices of the CHR in the protection and promotion of human rights given its current challenging context. Commissioner Gwendolyn Pimentel-Gana, CHR focal commissioner for migrant rights, expressed enthusiasm to exchange experience and practices with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) of Nepal to strengthen partnership for migrant rights. The NHRC Nepal signed an MOU with NHRC Qatar in 2015 and an activation plan of the MOU in 2016 the CHR signed a Cooperation Agreement with the latter in January 2019. NHRC Qatar holds leadership positions in the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI) and the Asia Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions (APF). “Hence, learning from the experience of Nepal on their MOU implementation shall be helpful in ensuring that CHR’s agreement with NHRC Qatar will yield positive impact to the lives and rights of overseas Filipino workers and their families,’’ the CHR statement read. Pimentel-Gana also expressed her hope to have an MOU with NHRC Nepal and reiterated the CHR’s interest to learn about Nepal’s engagement with Qatar. “We want to hear more about the implementation of your agreement with NHRC Qatar. We also hope that at the end your visit, we would be able to come up with an MOU to solidify our partnership,” Pimentel-Gana said. The NHRI delegates visited the country for a three-day meeting that started on June 18 to meet their CHR counterparts where measures were discussed to further instill and promote human rights. “It is expected that the meeting will help strengthen bilateral cooperation between the CHR and NHRC Nepal, ensure coordination as regards migration and human rights, and forge stronger mechanisms for human rights protection in coordination with NHRI networks,’’ the CHR concluded.
CHR Chairperson Chito Gascon(Jansen Romero / MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO) Both human rights agencies have vowed to exchange inputs in coming up with common initiatives to promote human rights specifically with regards to the context of migration. CHR Chairperson Chito Gascon has stressed the common issues and other matters that CHR and NHRC Nepal share particularly on being an “A” status National Human Rights Institution (NHRI) and having both signed cooperation agreements with the National Human Rights Committee of Qatar (NHRC Qatar). “With our common experiences and issues, we need to discuss strategies so our people are protected. We know that it’s one thing to have something on paper versus the day-to-day context of the people we seek to protect and defend. Let’s work together so we can demand and follow through with commitments and hold people to account,” Chairperson Gascon said. He added that among the common approaches that can be explored are mechanisms of sharing information, the quick response and urgent alerts, including avenues of partnerships. In response, Honorable Commissioner Sudip Pathak of NHRC Nepal expressed their country’s interest in strengthening cooperation particularly in protecting migrant rights. “We are very much sincere in protecting migrant rights. We hope that we will develop our relationship in these areas. We want to work with you in developing protection mechanisms in collaboration with government and civil society, he said. Pathak also expressed their intent to share Nepal’s experience and practices particularly in implementing their Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with NHRC Qatar as well as their eagerness to learn about the best practices of the CHR in the protection and promotion of human rights given its current challenging context. Commissioner Gwendolyn Pimentel-Gana, CHR focal commissioner for migrant rights, expressed enthusiasm to exchange experience and practices with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) of Nepal to strengthen partnership for migrant rights. The NHRC Nepal signed an MOU with NHRC Qatar in 2015 and an activation plan of the MOU in 2016 the CHR signed a Cooperation Agreement with the latter in January 2019. NHRC Qatar holds leadership positions in the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI) and the Asia Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions (APF). “Hence, learning from the experience of Nepal on their MOU implementation shall be helpful in ensuring that CHR’s agreement with NHRC Qatar will yield positive impact to the lives and rights of overseas Filipino workers and their families,’’ the CHR statement read. Pimentel-Gana also expressed her hope to have an MOU with NHRC Nepal and reiterated the CHR’s interest to learn about Nepal’s engagement with Qatar. “We want to hear more about the implementation of your agreement with NHRC Qatar. We also hope that at the end your visit, we would be able to come up with an MOU to solidify our partnership,” Pimentel-Gana said. The NHRI delegates visited the country for a three-day meeting that started on June 18 to meet their CHR counterparts where measures were discussed to further instill and promote human rights. “It is expected that the meeting will help strengthen bilateral cooperation between the CHR and NHRC Nepal, ensure coordination as regards migration and human rights, and forge stronger mechanisms for human rights protection in coordination with NHRI networks,’’ the CHR concluded.