Duterte: Murderer, Human Rights Violator!

The administration of President Rodrigo Duterte killed 141 activists and members of different people’s organizations including 5 minors from July 2016 to March 2018 and has killed at least 20,000 suspected drug pushers and users including those wrongfully accused and minors. The killings were based on mere allegations, and the deaths of the victims of extrajudicial killings were justified by lies, according to children’s rights group Children’s Rehabilitation Center (CRC) as they joined today’s protests during the commemoration of Martial law declaration in the Philippines.

“Aside from the killing spree, since President Duterte assumed presidency, 10,023 children were almost killed, and 20 minors were illegally arrested and illegally detained. This includes the torture victims from Compostela Valley who were held captive for 8 days, starved, burned and left for dead,” Frances Bondoc, Officer-in-Charge of Children’s Rehabilitation Center (CRC), said.

From July 2016 to March 2018, the CRC documented a total of 136,945 children victims of human rights violations from the 447 incidents of human rights violations involving children.

“Duterte’s Martial Law has spread fear and sowed terror among the people. He encouraged the military and police to attack people’s organizations, Lumad communities, women and children, including suspected drug pushers. He enabled and allowed the increasing number of human rights violations. Communities and individuals including children are accused of being supporters and/or members of New People’s Army (NPA), as elements of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) propagate lies while red-tagging individuals and repressing their civil and political rights,” Bondoc added.

According to CRC, President Duterte used Martial Law to serve his own agenda, much like his idol, the dictator Ferdinand Marcos. Martial Law served Duterte’s cohorts and big businesses to plunder Philippines’ natural resources, raking huge profits while leaving people scavenging on low wages and unstable jobs and encouraging children to participate in precarious and hazardous labor. Martial Law killed hundreds of civilians in Mindanao and displaced almost half a million Filipinos (427, 232) and bombed communities affecting 356, 304 civilians.

Children’s rights advocates from CRC and other rights groups demanded an end to Martial law and pursue of a just and lasting peace through the street protest. The group also emphasized that genuine peace can only be achieved upon serving justice to all victims of human rights violations, including children and the indictment of the guilty President Rodrigo Duterte, accountable for all his crimes against the Filipino people.

“As the United Nations celebrate September 21, International Day of Peace, Filipinos marked the day with protest against intensifying human rights violations and condemned the continuing impunity of a despotic tyrant who implements his anti-people policies. We will always remember September as a grim reminder of the abuses of Martial Law. AS LONG AS HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS CONTINUE AND ABUSE OF POWER PREVAIL, THERE WILL BE NO JUSTICE. WITHOUT JUSTICE THERE CAN NEVER BE GENUINE PEACE,” Bondoc concluded.

*This is Press Release

Accomplishments of Presidential Candidates Related to Real Estate

Lamudi Philippines outlines some of the accomplishments of the 2016 presidential candidates that in some way benefited the real estate industry

In anticipation of the 2016 national elections, real estate website Lamudi Philippines (www.lamudi.com.ph) enumerates the accomplishments of the five candidates for president—Mar Roxas III, Grace Poe-Llamanzares, Rodrigo Duterte, Jejomar Binay Jr., and Miriam Defensor Santiago—that have somehow affected the real estate industry.

Mar A. Roxas III

Former congressman and senator and 2010 vice-presidential candidate Mar A. Roxas may not have pushed pieces of legislation directly related to real estate, but he did author two that in way benefited the industry.

One is Republic Act 8748, which is an amendment to the Special Economic Zone Act. In this amendment, although establishments operating within these eco-zones are exempted from paying taxes, they are required to remit 5 percent of their gross income earned: 3 percent to the national government and 2 percent directly to the treasurer’s office of the city or municipality where the eco-zone is located.

In addition, this piece of legislation also called for providing for disturbance compensation for residents who were displaced or evicted to give way for the construction of these eco-zones.

Another important piece of legislation Roxas authored is Republic Act 8756, which calls for giving incentives to multinational companies who establish regional headquarters in the country. Among the incentives include issuance of multiple-entry visas to the foreign employees and immediate family members of said companies, a fixed withholding tax on compensation of 15 percent, and exemption on value-added tax, among others.

Miriam Defensor Santiago

Senator Santiago is the Senate’s most prolific member, having filed a total of 1,231 bills and resolutions during the Fourteenth Congress (2007–2010), which is almost twice as much as the chamber’s second placer (former senator and now Vista Land president Manny Villar).

Among the bills Senator Santiago co-authored is the Republic Act 9646, also known as the Real Estate Service Act or the RESA Law. This piece of legislation called for the professionalization of the real estate service by means of mandating all practitioners to be licensed by the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC), the same way that lawyers, doctors, engineers, nurses, and architects, among other professionals, are licensed by the said agency.

Grace Poe-Llamanzares

Although Grace Poe made election history by garnering the highest number of votes for any elected official during the May 2013 elections, this neophyte senator and now presidential candidate still has to leave an indelible mark on the real estate industry. However, she did lead hearings on public transport, most notably on the rehabilitation of the MRT and LRT.

Jejomar Binay, Jr.

As head of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC), vice-president Binay cited a number of accomplishments for the country’s key shelter agencies. Among these, according to his spokesperson lawyer Rico Quicho, is the provision of house and lot packages, lots, or houses to almost 800,000 families, the total value of which amounts to Php268.826 billion.

Quicho also noted that during Binay’s term as housing czar, Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF) or the Pag-IBIG Fund became the largest shelter agency with assets reaching more than Php376 billion. In addition, under Binay’s watch the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB) also became stricter in monitoring the real estate industry, most notably on advertisements. For example, real estate developers are prohibited from including information that can mislead buyers of properties, such as inaccurate locations and exaggerations.

Rodrigo Duterte

Although long-time Davao City mayor Rodrigo Duterte has yet to make his political contributions felt throughout the country, his accomplishments as local chief executive is well lauded. Many observers believe that Davao City became more progressive (and safer) under his watch, and among his most important ordinances is the Comprehensive Land Use Plan, which outlined flood- and landslide-prone areas within Davao City where human settlement is prohibited.

This tough-talking mayor is also quite popular for his focus on peace and order, and many of his supporters hope he can accomplish in the entire Philippines what he had in Davao City.