Greenpeace demands bigger budget for CHR, a ‘crucial ally’ for climate justice

QUEZON CITY, Philippines (16 September 2022) — The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) on Thursday concluded its budget briefing for the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations, gaining support from solons for an increase in its 2023 budget. The Department of Budget and Management only approved a PhP846.38-million allocation for the Commission — down PhP 118 million from the current year, and a far cry from the agency’s proposal of PhP 1.6 billion to be able to deliver their mandate effectively.

Reacting to this, Greenpeace campaigner Virginia Benosa-Llorin said:

“As the climate crisis worsens each year, and with more and more Filipinos deprived of their basic rights due to corporations’ destructive practices, CHR’s role has become even more crucial as an ally of the climate advocacy. Thus, Greenpeace calls on Congress to grant them the budget they deem necessary to fulfill their mandate and further aid our calls for climate justice.

The Commission, through its National Inquiry on Climate Change (NICC),[1] declared that climate change is a human rights issue and is now urging the government to take heed of the NICC report’s recommendations, such as holding the Carbon Majors accountable for their contributions to climate change and establishing a financial mechanism for loss and damage. This also came as the UN General Assembly recently established that a healthy environment is a human right.[2] These are calls that Greenpeace itself stands by, and this is why we believe CHR is essential in ensuring that these recommendations are enacted, beyond paper and into concrete action.

The Philippine government recently boasted its record-high PhP 453.11 billion climate expenditure budget; yet, despite being an implementing body for the administration’s climate agenda, CHR is getting the short end of the stick. If climate truly is Marcos Jr’s priority, such a commitment must also be reflected on his fiscal policy.

Our coffers can afford to allocate great amounts to this cause — what we can’t afford is to slow down against the threat of worsening climate impacts.”

[1] The NICC Report, issued in May 2022 after almost a seven-year rigorous process that presented experts’ opinions, established that climate change affects the full scope of human rights of the Filipino people. These rights include the individual rights to life, food, water, sanitation, and health, and collective rights to food security, development, self-determination, preservation of culture, equality, and non-discrimination. The findings of the report also recognize that a just transition to RE and an end to fossil fuel dependence is necessary and urgent if we are to avoid the worst impacts of climate change and protect Filipinos’ lives and rights.

The world’s first Climate Change and Human Rights Inquiry, filed by Filipino typhoon survivors, communities, and civil society organizations at the Commission on Human Rights on September 22, 2015, sought to hold carbon majors accountable for human rights harms arising from the climate crisis. The final report on the Inquiry was released by the CHR on May 6, 2022. The findings are a victory for the millions of Filipinos whose fundamental rights are being impacted by the corporations behind the climate crisis, as they show that there are legal grounds for communities to hold corporations accountable for undermining climate action. Read the full text of the final report here: https://chr.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/CHRP-NICC-Report-2022.pdf

[2] In historic move, UN declares healthy environment a human right