14 June 2014 – The Philippines highlights its achievements in furtherance of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy (UNGCTS).
In a statement delivered on June 12 before the United Nations General Assembly, Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Civilian Security and Consular Affairs Rafael E. Seguis declared that, “The Philippines has been facing constant threats of terrorism during the past decade… (but) our resolve remains clearer than ever…rather than submit to fear and paralysis, all the more we have become undaunted and determined.”
Undersecretary Seguis was in New York to deliver the Philippine Statement during the Fourth Biennial Review of the United Nations Global Counter Terrorism Strategy. He reported on the Philippines’ various accomplishments in combating terrorism since its last report during the Third Review back in 2012.
He reported on the various rescue efforts by the pertinent authorities of the Philippine Government involving persons abducted and/or held hostage by terrorists in the Philippines, including the capture two days ago of Khair Mundos a.k.a. Abu Ayman, who is wanted in the United States and has acknowledged to have received funds from Al Qaeda to finance bombings in the Philippines.
He also called attention to ongoing efforts to further strengthen the Philippines’ anti-terrorism lae, as well as the active pursuit in the Philippine Congress of three draft bills on (a) strategic trade management involving dual use of goods, (b) Chemical Weapons Convention, and (3) Biological Weapons Convention.
According to Undersecretary Seguis, the Philippines has had successes in fulfilling the objectives of the Four Pillars of the UNGCTS, with due emphasis given to the recent signing of the Philippines-Indonesia Memorandum of Understanding on Combating International Terrorism, and the partnership with the International Center for Counter Terrorism (ICCT), which developed a National Operation Framework on Counter Radicalization and De-Radicalization (CR/DR).
He added that the Philippines is already the site of the Regional headquarters of the Chemical-Biological-Radiological-Nuclear Center of Excellence (CBRN CoE) in Southeast Asia, which is a joint undertaking with the European Union and the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI).
“In fact, sports has also been a tool, like the annual Football for Peace, which brings children from selected conflict areas to Manila, not only for sports clinics, but also to transform their outlooks in life from a ‘culture of violence’ to that of a ‘a culture of peace,’” the Undersecretary said.
It was also mentioned that a Manual for Collaborative Intelligence, Investigation and Prosecution of Terrorism-Related Cases has been developed with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), which clearly shows the seriousness of the Philippines in combating one of the greatest threats to international peace and stability.
Undersecretary Seguis, in mentioning the ASEAN Convention on Counter-Terrorism, stressed that, even as the Philippines “builds an effective criminal justice system by providing more legal tools for law enforcement and judicial authorities to fight terrorism… (it) also respects, protects and uphold the rule of law, particularly civil liberties and human rights, with the latter being the cornerstone of Pillar IV of the UNGCTS.
He concluded by stressing that “We must remain even more vigilant. The fight against terrorism should only unite us in the spirit of the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations.” END