Thank you, Mister Vice-President.

The actions of the Council and its mechanisms must be measured against their effectiveness and impact on the ground, in line with the High Commissioner’s statements underscoring the need for actions to translate to concrete and meaningful transformation where they matter.

This transformation cannot be achieved by unilateral measures that denigrate the role of States as duty bearers. In this regard, we fully support on the Council President on his priority to strengthen the Council as a platform for genuine dialogue and constructive cooperation.

Mister Vice-President,

The Philippines highlights the urgency of concerns raised by the High Commissioner in her Oral Report over hostile policies and measures by certain states that expose migrants to exploitation and peril. We reiterate our call for the concerned states to uphold and protect the rights of migrants and respect the humanity and dignity of migrants under all circumstances.

We are deeply concerned about reported cases of illegal detention of migrant children and unaccompanied minors in the United Kingdom, as well as other policies and practices of the government that abet modern slavery including of migrant seafarers. We flag cases of Filipino seafarers who reported to the United Kingdom police for physical assault and maltreatment by their skipper only to be charged by the authorities for visa violations.

Mister President,

The Philippines pays careful attention to this agenda item and appreciates its importance to the work of the Council. We are concerned that statements under this agenda item are sometimes based on unsubstantiated information or reports which are detached from realities on the ground. We call on all states to uphold the integrity of the Council by observing due diligence and ensuring that our discourse is based on facts and does not disintegrate to a level that credits purveyors of fake news.

In our side events during this Session, the Philippines drew attention to how the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA), a terrorist group, and its front organizations, have abused the good faith of the UN system and development partners to run fictitious social programs while financing their criminal activities and peddling false claims on the human rights situation in the Philippines, even as it has perpetuated systemic and unspeakable atrocities to its followers and indigenous communities across the country for decades. We call on the European Union, European states, and the international community to stop enabling these groups by strengthening due diligence mechanisms for their relevant agencies.

Thank you, Mr. Vice-President. END