April 1, 2026: Latest human rights news from Rights Report Philippines
CHILDREN · EDUCATION · CIVIC SPACE · DISINFORMATION · FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION · RED-TAGGING · ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL RIGHTS · EXTRAJUDICIAL AND SUMMARY KILLINGS · PRESS FREEDOM · WOMEN
‘How Will We Read If We Are Being Raped?’
An 11-year-old girl’s letter to President Marcos jr. went viral. Behind it is a small shelter in Camarines Sur — and a fight against an official the children say has made their lives impossible.
Social Media Platforms Are Putting Human Rights Defenders at Risk: UN Expert
A new report by a UN Special Rapporteur finds that Meta/Facebook, X, TikTok, YouTube and other platforms activists rely on to expose abuse are increasingly being used to silence them — and the tech companies responsible appear to be paying less and less attention.
Endless Workers’ Rights Violations: 105 Trade Unionists Killed; Thousands More Arrested, Harassed, Red-Tagged, Displaced
A preliminary report by Workers’ Rights Watch paints a grim picture of the state of labor rights in the Philippines. Accountability is practically zero while much-vaunted mechanisms to stop or mitigate the violations, like the EU’s GSP+, have proven ineffective.
Most Filipinos Can’t Afford Housing Not Just Because Homes Are Expensive. It’s Also Because They Don’t Earn Enough.
CONTEXT CHECK: Filipinos are struggling with housing, yes. But what the data actually shows is that the Philippines has an inequality problem — deep, structural, and decades in the making — and housing is simply where people feel it most acutely.
Philippines Is Ground Zero for Disinformation. Facebook’s Fix Will Make it Worse.
Meta/Facebook scrapped its fact-checkers. Now its own watchdog says the replacement – Community Notes – could backfire in places like the Philippines where disinformation is rampant. And that’s because the company is “cosplaying accountability.”
Court Upholds Cumpio, Domequil Terror-Financing Conviction
A TACLOBAN court on Friday affirmed the terrorism financing conviction of community journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio and lay worker Marielle Domequil, and denied their bid to be released on bail. The ruling paves the way for the two women to be transferred to a women’s prison in Metro Manila after more than six years behind bars.
Appeals Court Overturns Rebellion Conviction of Child Rights Advocate
Ma. Salome Ujano’s acquittal is the latest blow to a security framework critics say is built on thin evidence
