MANILA: The Philippines has reassured the United States of its consistent efforts to investigate and prosecute cases of unexplained killings and other human rights violations as Washington continues to withhold almost $13m in military assistance.
The Philippine embassy in Washington said leading members of the US House of Representatives are satisfied with the efforts being undertaken by President Benigno Aquino to address concerns earlier raised at the US Capitol over the human rights situation in the Philippines.
The embassy said American legislators, led by Kentucky Rep Harold Rogers, chair of the House Committee on Appropriations, had expressed satisfaction with the report of Justice Secretary Leila de Lima on the progress that Manila has made in the human rights front.
De Lima also met on Friday with the following members of the House Committee on Appropriations and Committee on Foreign Affairs: Rep. Tom Marino (R, Pennsylvania), Steve Austria (R, Ohio), Ed Royce (R, California), Mike Kelley (R, Pennsylvania), Tom Cole (R, Oklahoma), and Donald Manzullo (R, Illinois).
She is scheduled to meet with members of the US Senate this week.
The justice secretary is in Washington to lead government efforts in raising the awareness of American legislators as well as officials of the Department of State and the Department of Defence and leaders of non-government agencies on the human rights achievements of Aquino.
Philippine Ambassador to Washington Jose Cuisia Jr and De Lima assured American legislators that the Philippine government has been consistent in its efforts to investigate and prosecute cases of unexplained killings and other human rights cases that have been brought to the attention of Manila.
“The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) have recently come up with a unified protocol called Operational Guidelines in Evidence-Gathering, Investigation and Case Build-up in Cases of Political and Media Killings,” De Lima told legislators.
“As an innovative measure, prosecutors are also now working closely with law enforcers in evidence gathering and case buildup,” she added.
The Philippine Star
