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UPDATE (Philippines): Disappeared victim's family afforded financial assistance and trauma counseling

December 8, 2005

UPDATE ON URGENT APPEAL UPDATE ON URGENT APPEAL UPDATE ON URGENT APPEAL

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Update on Urgent Appeal
8 December 2005

[Re: FA-16-2004: Forcible disappearance of a young man in Davao City; UP-103-2005: A 13-year-old daughter of a disappeared man in Davao City suffers trauma; UP-134-2005: Social welfare department fails relatives of disappeared victim in Davao City, Mindanao]
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UP-162-2005: PHILIPPINES: Disappeared victim’s family afforded financial assistance and trauma counseling

PHILIPPINES: Disappearance; child rights; inadequate government action; social welfare
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission is pleased to inform you that Amina Ala and her daughter, Mirriam, the family of disappeared victim Sabdurah Abdullah, have been afforded with financial assistance by the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) in Davao City, Mindanao (please see our previous appeals on this case: FA-16-2004; UP-103-2005). The CSWDO’s response came after the AHRC applied consistent pressure on the government to comply with what they had promised to the victims (please see: UP-134-2005).

On 6 December 2005, Amina was given a small amount of Php 2,000.00 (USD 36) as part of the livelihood assistance as promised by the CSWDO. The CSWDO also acted on the request to have Mirriam treated for trauma. Amina and CSWDO have yet to decide on the arrangements of their assistance. It was planned that CSWDO would take Mirriam to a rehabilitation center where she will be treated. Amina however, requested them to have her daughter treated in their home, as Mirriam does not want to be away from her mother for a long period of time.

While the AHRC welcomes this development, we retain some level of concern that the promised treatment will not materialise. The AHRC strongly suggests that any intervention for Mirriam must be properly discussed and mutually agreed upon by both her family and the social welfare department. We also request that the livelihood financial assistance be an ongoing allowance until the time that Amina feels that it is no longer required.

Your strong intervention is needed to pressure the local authorities, in particular the CSWDO, to seriously consider our concerns mentioned above. With regards to Sabdurah Abdullah disappearance case, please ask the Davao City Police Office (DCPO) and the Commission on Human Rights (CHR XI) to regularly update the victim’s family regarding the status of his disappearance.


SUGGESTED ACTION:

Please send letter to the CSWDO to express your concern regarding the appropriate arrangement for Mirriam’s treatment as well as financial assistance to her family. Likewise, please request the local police and regional human rights commission to update the family on the status of the case of the disappeared victim, Sabdurah Abdullah.


Suggested letter:


Dear __________,

PHILIPPINES: Disappeared victim’s family afforded financial assistance and trauma counseling

I am pleased to learn that the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) has responded to previous appeals to afford appropriate assistance to Amina Ala and her 13-year-old daughter, Mirriam, the family of disappeared victim Sabdurah Abdullah in Davao City, Mindanao.

I have learned that Amina has already been given a small amount of money as part of livelihood financial assistance promised to her by the CSWDO. The request to have Mirriam treated and placed in a government-sponsored trauma treatment has also been acted upon by the CSDWO.

While I commend the social welfare department’s positive response on this matter, I would like to register some concerns on this development.

I am aware that the CSWDO is planning to take Mirriam to a rehabilitation center. I am also aware, however, that her mother would prefer that her daughter be treated at home. Therefore, I am requesting the CSWDO to ensure that any intervention for Mirriam be properly discussed and agreed upon by her family and the CSWDO.

I further ask the CSWDO to ensure the sustainability of financial assistance to the victims. Although Amina has already been afforded money, the duration of the assistance has not been clearly determined. I ask the social welfare department to sustain its assistance as the situation requires.

Further, I also asked the Davao City Police Office (DCPO) and the Commission on Human Rights (CHR XI) to closely coordinate with the victims regarding the status of the case of disappeared victim, Sabdurah Abdullah. Both the DCPO and CHR XI must inform and closely coordinate with the family regarding any developments in this case.

I trust that you will take appropriate action on this matter.

Yours sincerely,


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SEND A LETTER TO:

1. Mr. Rodrigo Duterte
City Mayor
City Government of Davao
City Hall Building, San Pedro Street
8000 Davao City
PHILIPPINES
Fax: +63 082 224-5885

2. Ms. Lualhati F. Pablo
Officer in Charge
Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)
Batasan Pambansa Complex, Constitution Hills
Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
Tel.: +63 2 931-8101 to 07
Tel/Fax: +63 2 931-8138

3. Atty. Alberto Sipaco Jr.
Regional Director
Commission on Human Rights, Region XI
Trinity Bldg., Quimpo Boulevard, Ecoland
8000 Davao City
PHILIPPINES
Tel: +63 82 298-3749
Fax: +63 82 298-2233

4. The Director
Davao City Police Office (DCPO)
Camp Domingo Leonor
San Pedro Street
Davao City,
PHILIPPINES


Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Desk
Asian Human Rights Commission

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Update
Document ID :
UP-162-2005
Countries :
Issues :
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Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.