Senate probe sought into move to delist cases of desaparecidos

MANILA — Sen. Leila de Lima asked the Senate to conduct an inquiry into the government’s move to have a United Nations working group delist more than 600 cases of enforced and involuntary disappearances.

De Lima filed Senate Resolution 1032, urging the upper chamber to look into the government’s action calling for the removal of 625 names from the records of UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances (WGEID).

Families of desaparecidos urge UN to reject government’s move to delist cases of disappearances

“There is a need to strongly reconsider this motion by the government as this is a grave injustice not only for the victims of enforced disappearances themselves, but also for their families and loved ones who have longed for the proper closure to these pending cases for the longest time,” De Lima said.

The Philippine delegation sought to delist 625 cases of disappearances—mostly attributed to government forces that occured from 1975 to 2012—during a meeting with the UN WGEID last February, noting the country has a strong legal framework and institutional mechanisms to address the issue of enforced disappearances.

“Despite the government’s avowed declaration for human rights, we have yet to see the end to systematic killings, abductions and enforced disappearances, mostly of activists,” De Lima, a former chair of the Commission on Human Rights said.

The action of the Philippine government was seen by human rights groups as a move to “erase the narratives of desaparecidos.” They also called on the UN working group to reject the government’s call. —