Eight (8) political prisoners were granted conditional pardon with parole conditions by former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. After more than a decade of political detention and punishment by the state, Orlando Bundalian Jr., Ruperto Lopez Jr., Pedro Madera, Pedro Pascual, Anacleto Mercader, Rogelio Galero, Mariano Reyes and Rodolfo Tubera were released at last this July 8, 2010 from the Maximum Compound of the National Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa eight days after the former president’s term ended.

Who will be the next Chairperson of the Commission Human Rights? With a new wave of extrajudicial killings, that person will have the challenge of independently investigating these new and existing cases, and monitoring the government. The present CHR Commissioners and major Human Rights civil society groups s say that the selection process is just as vital as the actual individual appointed.

“A participatory and transparent selection process is vital to the CHR’s standing in the U.N. and other international bodies to speak up on the Philippine human rights situation and advocate for victims,” said CHR Officer in Charge, Commissioner Cecilia R.V. Quisumbing.

Makati City, Philippines – Solidarity activists, mostly women under the Free Burma Coalition – Philippines (FBC-Phils) today staged a rally in front of the Myanmar (Burma) Embassy in Makati City as part of the international celebration of the 65th birthday of Burma’s democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.

Born on June 19^th, 1945, Aung San Suu Kyi is the world's only imprisoned Nobel Peace laureate. She has been under house arrest for almost 15 of the last 21 years by Burma's military regime.

“AGRA-KADABRA”: Black Magic is Upon Us
(Incremental Impunity in Progress)

Incremental impunity is in progress. By making a mountain out of a molehill of an alibi that both Zaldy and Akmad Ampatuan were not in the site of the infamous Ampatuan massacre, Acting Justice Secretary Agra seems to be part of a Conjurer’s magic words: “Agra-kadabra” to make the charges and the persons charged for plotting and/or executing the massacre disappear.