6 UN experts sound alarm over Philippine government’s ‘unchecked’ anti-terror powersMANILA, Philippines — Six independent United Nations human rights experts have flagged the Philippine government’s “seemingly broad and unchecked” use of the anti-terrorism law to target red-tagged humanitarian workers and church leaders. This, according to the rights experts, goes against the Philippines’ international human rights obligations, which the government has repeatedly and publicly vowed to uphold. The UN rights experts also flagged the reported raids of the homes of human rights defenders and the offices of church workers and journalists, some of which were not preceded by the issuance of formal search warrants. The Supreme Court’s procedural rules for petitions seeking judicial relief from the Anti-Terrorism Council’s terrorist designation took effect on January 15. Prior to its passage in 2020, the Anti-Terrorism Act was widely opposed by human rights defenders, civil society and the government’s own human rights commission for its perceived impact on civil liberties and spaces of dissent.
