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I. Summary

Human rights, according to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, refers to norms that
aim to protect people from political, legal, and social abuses. It aims that each individual, no
matter who are they or where they are born, have the same basic rights and freedom. It is not
privileges, and cannot be granted or revoked. They are inalienable and universal.

The history behind the concept of human rights is a long one. Throughout the centuries
and across societies, religions, and cultures, authorities have struggled with defining notions of
rightfulness, justice, and rights.

Human Rights in the Philippines, or the absence of these rights, are better understood
through the prism of colonialism. Over the last 400 years the Filipino people have suffered under
first 330 years of Spanish colonialism and then a further 45 years of American rule.

Under Spanish colonialism, Philippines’ Human rights were first violated when the Battle
of Mactan happen as Lapu-Lapu strongly opposed Magellan’s proposal and Humabon’s orders.
Many warriors and armies of both sides died including Magellan.

After the battle of Mactan, The Spaniards conquered the Philippines for 333 years. They
became abusive to the Indios which they discriminated in their own land. They showed how
advanced and strong they are in terms of technologies and how to handle a war.

And on February 17, 1872, the three martyred Priests, Fathers Mariano Gomez, Jose
Apolonio Burgos, and Jacinto Zamora, better known for the acronym GOMBURZA, were
executed by garrote by the Spaniards in Bagumbayan in connection with the 1872 Cavite
Mutiny.

The three priests incurred the hatred of the Spanish authorities for leading the campaign
against the abusive Spanish friars and fighting for equal rights among priests. They fought on
unresolved issues about secularization in the Philippines that resulted in a conflict among the
religious regulars and the church seculars.
 In short, Spaniards use their power to take away the human rights of every Filipino
during their time. And a lot of nationalists were killed simply for advocating independence.

After the Spanish period, it was followed by a particularly brutal period of “pacification”
when hundreds of thousands of Filipinos were killed resisting integration into the new American
Empire.

It was happened from 1899 to 1902, the American Colonialization of the Philippines.
Atleast 4,200 American and 20,000 Filipino soldiers are thought to have been killed in the
Philippine and American war. As many as 200,000 Filipino civilians died from violence, famine
and disease.

The war was brutal on both sides. U.S. forces at times burned villages, implemented
civilian recon centration policies, and employed torture on suspected guerrillas, while Filipino
fighters also tortured captured soldiers and terrorized civilians who cooperated with American
forces. Many civilians died during the conflict as a result of the fighting, cholera and malaria
epidemics, and food shortages caused by several agricultural catastrophes.

And in 1941, war came unexpectedly to the Philippines. Japan opened a surprise attack
on the Pearl Harbor of Philippines without warning. Japanese troops attacked the islands in many
places and launched a pincer drive in Manila. Aerial bombardment was followed by landings of
ground troops in Luzon.

During Japanese Colonialization, U.S. and Filipino troops retreated to Bataan, last
province to surrender to Japanese. 1942, when Bataan Death march happened. Almost
36,000 U.S. and Filipino soldiers were forced to march without food and water, prisoners of war
were killed by their guards, survivors were taken to a concentration camp at Capaz. And
Japanese forces entered Manila, proclaimed end of U.S. occupation of Philippines, martial law
was imposed. Philippine economy collapsed; shortage of rice became serious.

And all human rights of Filipino people during American and Japanese colonialism was
totally taken away. They do not allow Filipino to have freedom from unlawful imprisonment,
torture, and execution in their hands. However, in 1945 U.S. forces entered Manila and Battle of
Manila happened where Japan surrendered to U.S. In 1946, Philippines granted full
independence and renamed Republic of the Philippines.
 In 1948, the UN General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
This document, written by an international committee chaired by Eleanor Roosevelt, lays the
basis for modern international human rights law. The declaration is based on the principle that all
human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. It serves to define the basic human
rights and freedoms to which all individuals are entitled.

It lists 30 articles recognizing, among other things, the principle of nondiscrimination and
the right to life and liberty. It refers to negative freedoms, like the freedom from torture or
slavery, as well as positive freedoms, such as the freedom of movement and residence.

However, Philippines also created the laws and legal documents to ensure the human
rights of Filipino citizens. The rights of Filipinos can be found in Article III of the 1987
Philippine Constitution. Also called the Bill of Rights, it includes 22 sections which declare a
Filipino citizen’s rights and privileges that the Constitution has to protect, no matter what. It
encompasses basic civil and political rights, such as freedom of expression, religion, or peaceful
assembly, as well as social, economic, and cultural rights, such as the right to education and the
right to freely choose one’s occupation and be paid and treated fairly.

Aside from various local laws, human rights in the Philippines are also guided by the
UN's International Bill of Human Rights – a consolidation of 3 legal documents including
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights (ICCPR), and the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural
Rights (ICESCR).

As one of the signatories of these legal documents, the Philippines is obliged to recognize
and apply appropriate laws to ensure each right’s fulfillment.

The declaration takes no sides as to which rights are more important, insisting on their
universality, indivisibility, and interdependence. And in the past decades, international human
rights law has grown, deepening and expanding people’s understanding of what human rights
are, and how to better protect them.
 II. Facts
 The idea of human rights emerged stronger after World War II.
 (1946) Islands granted full independence, renamed Republic of the Philippines
 In 1948, Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), which serves to define the
basic human rights and freedoms to which all individuals are entitled.
 On December 10, 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) was
adopted by the 56 members of the United Nations.
 The United Nations (UN) defines human rights as universal and inalienable,
interdependent and indivisible, and equal and non-discriminatory.
 The rights of Filipinos can be found in Article III of the 1987 Philippine Constitution.
 In the Philippines, the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) primarily handles the
investigations of human rights violations. However, it has no power to resolve issues as
stated in the Supreme Court decision in 1991.
 Established in 1986 during the administration of President Corazon Aquino, CHR is an
independent body which ensures the protection of human rights guaranteed by the Bill of
Rights.

III. Discussion
The doctrine of human rights has been highly influential within international law, global
and regional institutions. Actions by states and non-governmental organizations form a basis of
public policy worldwide. The idea of human rights suggests that "if the public discourse of
peacetime global society can be said to have a common moral language, it is that of human
rights." The strong claims made by the doctrine of human rights continue to provoke
considerable skepticism and debates about the content, nature and justifications of human rights
to this day. The precise meaning of the term right is controversial and is the subject of continued
philosophical debate; while there is consensus that human rights encompasses a wide variety of
rights such as the right to a fair trial, protection against enslavement, prohibition of genocide,
free speech, or a right to education, there is disagreement about which of these particular rights
should be included within the general framework of human rights; some thinkers suggest that
human rights should be a minimum requirement to avoid the worst-case abuses, while others see
it as a higher standard.
 The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was adopted by the UN General
Assembly on 10 December 1948, was the result of the experience of the Second World War. With
the end of that war, and the creation of the United Nations, the international community vowed
never again to allow atrocities like those of that conflict happen again. World leaders decided to
complement the UN Charter with a road map to guarantee the rights of every individual
everywhere. The document they considered, and which would later become the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, was taken up at the first session of the General Assembly in 1946.

IV. Conclusion
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https://www.jstor.org/topic/human-rights/?refreqid=excelsior%3A74f91de4131c7fb55574a902b5508ff1

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https://theculturetrip.com/asia/philippines/articles/the-story-of-lapu-lapu-the-legendary-filipino-hero/

https://www.britannica.com/place/Philippines/The-early-republic

https://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/asia/philippines/phtimeln2.htm#page
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mariano-gomez-jose-apolonio-burgos-and-jacinto-zamora-were-executed

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