20 November 2018
Dear fiends and colleagues,
As part of the 70th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Commission on Human Rights, in partnership with the Legal Network for Truthful Elections (LENTE) will hold its first Human Rights Congress on 6-7 December 2018 at the Leong Hall Auditorium, Ateneo de Manila University, Quezon City with the theme, “Unity and Action for Human Rights”.
We believe that it becomes both relevant and necessary for CHR and civil society to come together at a critical time when basic freedoms and human rights continue to be threatened not only by poverty and inequality, but also by impunity and disregard for the rule of law.
The HR Congress aims to gather civil society organizations from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, as well as CHR national and regional offices, to address issues concerning human rights violations in the civil and political sphere, as well as in the economic, social and cultural spheres. lt also aims to discuss and address human rights issues emerging from the unique and nuanced context of Mindanao- all these in the hope of forging stronger unities and more effective action in promoting, protecting and defending human rights.
The two-day event aims to:
• come up with a common human rights agenda that will be pursued by both civil society organizations and CHR at the national and regional levels;
• forge stronger alliances and partnerships between CSOS and CHR at the regional level by uniting on a common local agenda and plan of action; and
• build a broader constituency for human rights by involving and engaging non-traditional partners and actors in human rights education, promotion and protection.
Your organization’s presence and contribution to the discussions is important for us to be able to achieve the objectives cited above. ln this light, we would like to request you to send one (1) delegate from your organization to participate in the two-day event. Attached is a copy of the program which includes a link to the online registration form.
The Human Rights Congress 2018 is being convened by the Commission of Human Rights, in partnership with the Legal Network for Truthful Elections (LENTE), and is made possible through the support of the Governance in Justice (GOJUST HR) Project and The Asia Foundation (TAF).
For questions and further information, please contact Mr. Rich Apollo Mamhot (0956-8022072 or 0939-3693969) or Mr. Denver Evangelista (0936-2079140) of LENTE, HR Congress Secretariat, with email address at hrcongressphil@gmail.com.
Patuloy nating isulong ang Karapatang Pantao!
