Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin (Photo courtesy of Presidential Human Rights Committee Secretariat)
Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin has lauded the United Nations (UN) and the United Kingdom (UK) for their continued support in advancing the Philippines’ human rights agenda, underscoring a renewed era of cooperation anchored on accountability and inclusivity.
In a ceremony at the Presidential Guest House on October 6, Bersamin formally received P2.3 million worth of promotional materials for the 4th Philippine Human Rights Plan (PHRP4) from UK Embassy Political Counsellor Andrew Bowes and Signe Poulsen, senior human rights adviser to the UN in the Philippines.
“The PHRP4 is not merely aspirational—it lays out concrete programs, measurable targets, and mechanisms for accountability,” Bersamin said. “It ensures that human rights commitments are implemented and sustained at all levels.”
The PHRP4 serves as the Marcos administration’s human rights roadmap, prioritizing the welfare of the country’s most vulnerable sectors—women, children, persons with disabilities, Indigenous Peoples, migrant workers, and those deprived of liberty.
Crafted through nationwide consultations with nearly 500 organizations from civil society, the private sector, academia, media, and grassroots communities, the plan embodies a collective vision. “This process ensures that the plan is owned by the people and responsive to their lived realities,” Bersamin emphasized.
Fulfilling global commitments
Bersamin reaffirmed the Philippines’ commitment to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), highlighting that the administration has already fulfilled three key pledges made during the UDHR’s 75th anniversary in December 2023—drafting a new national human rights plan, creating an inter-agency coordination body, and establishing a national forensics institute.
“We committed, and we delivered,” Bersamin declared. “The PHRP4 reflects our resolve to translate human rights into concrete action that improves people’s lives.”
With the UN and UK’s partnership, the government hopes to strengthen public awareness, policy coordination, and institutional reform, ensuring that human rights protection remains central to the nation’s governance and development goals.