22 November 2013 - The Philippines called upon Member States to make a greater commitment to the issues of the right to development and human rights and climate change in its statement during the General Assembly debate on the Report of the Human Rights Council held at the UN Headquarters on November 13.
Ambassador Libran N. Cabactulan, Philippine Permanent Representative to the United Nations, congratulated the newly-elected members of the Council. He expressed the hope that all States would continue to participate in the second cycle to maintain the universality and credibility of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) as a mechanism of the Council.
He recalled that it was the 20th Anniversary of the World Conference on Human Rights adopted by consensus the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, which reaffirmed the right to development as a universal and inalienable right and an integral part of fundamental human rights. He lamented, however, that the right to development seemed not to have been given the attention it deserved. He said that the Philippines will continue to advocate for and support discussions on the right to development, with a view to ensuring its realization, particularly in the Human Rights Council.
Ambassador Cabactulan also recalled that the Philippines, together with Bangladesh, tabled a resolution on Human rights and climate change in the Human Rights Council in 2011. The resolution reiterates the concern that climate change poses an immediate and far-reaching threat to people and communities around the world and has implications for the full enjoyment of human rights, which he said the Philippines had firsthand knowledge of.
He then thanked the UN System, the Secretary-General, and the international community for their support in the aftermath of the massive destruction and devastation wrought by typhoon Yolanda, internationally known as Haiyan. He pushed for concrete measures in the ongoing talks of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change taking place in Warsaw, Poland. END