The project aims to support human rights defenders in the Philippines working in critical areas such as child rights, indigenous rights, and environmental rights, as well as broader issues of human rights and democracy. This will be achieved by establishing structures and programs in 30 arch/dioceses, which actively promote and advocate for the respect of Human Rights in the Philippines and safeguard Human Rights defenders.
Directly involved are 450 Human Rights Advocates/ Defenders; 30 Justice & Peace Coordinators in the Dioceses, 90 Parish Social Action Teams, 1,350 members of faith communities and basic ecclesiastical communities. Indirectly involved are 27,000 people living in the communities.
Since 2016, the Philippines have faced widespread human rights violations, particularly under President Duterte’s anti-drug campaign, which led to thousands of deaths. Despite a change in leadership with President Marcos Jr. in 2022, repression persists, including red-tagging, extrajudicial killings, and political persecution. In the predominantly Catholic Philippines, the Catholic Church had previously only been sporadically involved in documenting and supporting human rights violations. However, in recent years, it has positioned itself as a credible and critical actor in the field of human rights. As a response a national Justice and Peace Program was drafted with 30 dioceses, led by CBCP Caritas Philippines Foundation Inc. and horizont3000, aiming to promote awareness, legal support, and advocacy for vulnerable communities.
The National Secretariat for Social Action (NASSA)/Caritas Philippines is the humanitarian, development and advocacy arm of the Catholic Church in the Philippines. It was created by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) in 1966 and mandated to accompany the poor and marginalized in the just and legitimate struggle for social justice and transformation.