On the occassion of World Press Freedom Day, the human rights group Karapatan today accused the Arroyo administration of being the number one threat to the people's right to information, freedom of expression and a free press.

"The sheer number of journalists killed with impunity in this country already speaks volumes about the real state of the Philippine press. Here is a country where journalists have to constantl look behind their backs and where the right to a free press is often exercised at the risk of one's life and limb," said Karapatan spokesperson Ruth Cervantes.

KARAPATAN welcomes the news that the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture (OPCAT) is being sent by Malacañang to the Senate for ratification.

“For a long time we have been urging the government to ratify the OPCAT as it offers additional remedy to victims of human rights violations; we, therefore, call on the Senate to ratify it as soon as possible,” said Marie Hilao-Enriquez, secretary general of KARAPATAN.

‘Living testament to regime's bloody rights record’
Arroyo human rights victims protest lies told at UPR

Victims of human rights violations of the Arroyo regime held its 3rd Saturday gathering today, April 19, 2008 to register their objection to the lies told by the Philippine government during the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) last week.

 To dramatize their protest, the organization Hustisya (Victims of Arroyo Regime United for Justice), depicted Mrs. Gloria Arroyo as a dummy, “joker with bloody hands.” They scored the Arroyo government for its stubborn view of protests against the worsening human rights situation in the country as nothing but propaganda.

Human rights alliance Karapatan, today said that the Philippine government’s report before the United Nations in the recently concluded Universal Periodic Review is but an attempt to hide the Arroyo government’s gruesome human rights record. While the Philippine delegation led by Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita pulled his act with an out-and-out tale of deception before the UNHRC session, victims of human rights violations and their families in their second monthly gathering for the year expressed disapproval and disgust.

The Philippine human rights alliance Karapatan today said that window dressing cannot hide the stench of the Arroyo regime's bloody human rights record. They also said that "Mrs. Arroyo and Gen. Ermita will not be happy for long because the world knows that justice has not been served and that the killings and disappearances continue."