A resolution condemning the Government of the Philippines for its continued detention of Senator Leila De Lima, calling for her immediate release, and for other purposes.

III 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. RES. 142 Condemning the Government of the Philippines for its continued detention of Senator Leila De Lima, calling for her immediate release, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES APRIL 4, 2019 Mr. MARKEY (for himself, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. DURBIN, Mrs. BLACKBURN, Mr. COONS, Mr. MERKLEY, Ms. SMITH, Mr. LEAHY, Mr. SCHATZ, Mrs. FEIN- STEIN, Mr. BOOKER, and Mr. CARDIN) submitted the following resolu- tion; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations DECEMBER 17, 2019 Reported by Mr. RISCH, with an amendment and an amendment to the preamble JANUARY 8, 2020 Considered, amended, and agreed to with an amended preamble RESOLUTION Condemning the Government of the Philippines for its con- tinued detention of Senator Leila De Lima, calling for her immediate release, and for other purposes. Whereas extrajudicial killings perpetrated by the Government of the Philippines as part of a government-directed anti- drug campaign present the foremost human rights chal- lenge in the Philippines; Whereas the Department of State’s 2017 Human Rights Re- port notes numerous human rights concerns, including VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:08 Jan 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR142.ATS SR142 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 SRES 142 ATS the persecution of human rights defenders and the deten- tion of political prisoners in the Philippines, stating, ‘‘The most significant human rights issues included: killings by security forces, vigilantes and others allegedly connected to the government, and by insurgents; torture and abuse of prisoners and detainees by security forces; often harsh and life threatening prison conditions; war- rantless arrests by security forces and cases of apparent government disregard for legal rights and due process; political prisoners; killings of and threats against journal- ists; official corruption and abuse of power; threats of vi- olence against human rights activists; violence against women; and forced labor.’’; Whereas the Department of State’s 2018 Human Rights re- port notes numerous human rights concerns in the Phil- ippines, including ‘‘unlawful or arbitrary killings by secu- rity forces, vigilantes, and others allegedly connected to the government, and by insurgents; forced disappearance; torture; arbitrary detention; harsh and life-threatening prison conditions; political prisoners; arbitrary or unlaw- ful interference with privacy; criminal libel; killings of and threats against journalists; official corruption and abuse of power; and the use of forced and child labor’’; Whereas, on February 23, 2017, an arrest warrant was issued for Philippine Senator Leila De Lima for allega- tions related to drug trafficking, and as of April 4, 2019, Senator De Lima had been detained for 770 days; Whereas the charges brought against Senator De Lima fol- lowed a history of criticizing extrajudicial killings in the Philippines and the Rodrigo R. Duterte administration’s antidrug campaign, including— VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:08 Jan 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR142.ATS SR142 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 SRES 142 ATS (1) in 2009, in her capacity as Chair of the Commis- sion on Human Rights, Senator De Lima investigated the alleged involvement of then-Mayor of Davao City Rodrigo R. Duterte in the extrajudicial killings executed by the so-called ‘‘Davao Death Squad’’; (2) on December 15, 2014, then-Secretary of Justice De Lima led a raid of the national penitentiary which re- sulted in the confiscation of drugs, firearms, and contra- band items and the extraction of 19 drug lords and high- profile inmates involved in the facility’s drug network; (3) on July 13, 2016, Senator De Lima, in her ca- pacity as Chair of the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights, filed Senate Resolution No. 9 calling for an investigation into extrajudicial killings and summary executions of suspected drug offenders arising from President Duterte’s ‘‘War on Drugs’’; (4) on August 22, 2016, Senator De Lima con- ducted Senate hearings during which alleged former death squad members detailed extrajudicial killings exe- cuted as part of the antidrug campaign and one member testified that Duterte participated in extrajudicial killings as mayor of Davao City; and (5) on August 2, 2016, and September 19, 2016, Senator De Lima delivered two privileged speeches on the Senate floor calling on President Duterte to end the killings; Whereas President Duterte vowed to publicly destroy Senator De Lima; Whereas the charges against Senator De Lima were sup- ported by testimony from inmates whose illegal activities were disrupted by her 2014 raid; VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:08 Jan 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR142.ATS SR142 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 SRES 142 ATS Whereas the United Nations Human Rights Council’s Work- ing Group on Arbitrary Detention adopted an Opinion on August 24, 2018, finding several categories of arbitrary detention and concluding, ‘‘Ms. De Lima’s political views and convictions are clearly at the centre of the present case and that the authorities have displayed an attitude towards her that can only be characterized as targeted and discriminatory. Indeed, she has been the target of partisan persecution and there is no explanation for this other than her exercise of the right to express such views and convictions as a human rights defender.’’; Whereas the Department of State’s 2017 Human Rights Re- port highlighted due process obstructions in the case of Senator De Lima, stating, ‘‘During the year prosecutors used a variety of legal tactics, including filing new and amending previous charges, to delay arraignment.’’; Whereas the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention recommended that the Government of the Phil- ippines adopt certain measures, including— (1) the immediate release of Senator De Lima; (2) an independent investigation of the circumstan- ces surrounding the arbitrary detention; and (3) the provision of compensation and other repara- tions, including reinstatement to the positions from which she was ousted; Whereas, on July 20, 2017, the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission of the United States Congress held a hearing on The Human Rights Consequences of the War on Drugs in the Philippines, during which Human Rights Watch testified about the ‘‘relentless government cam- paign’’ against Senator De Lima ‘‘in evident response to VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:08 Jan 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR142.ATS SR142 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 SRES 142 ATS her outspoken criticism of Duterte’s ‘war on drugs’ and her calls for accountability’’; Whereas Amnesty International finds Senator De Lima’s de- tention to be based solely on her criticism of the Govern- ment of the Philippines, her political beliefs, and her peaceful defense of human rights, and considers her a Prisoner of Conscience; Whereas the immediate release of Senator De Lima has been called for by nongovernmental organizations, human rights groups, parliamentary bodies, and individuals in- cluding the European Parliament, the Australian Par- liament, the Inter-Parliamentary Union, Amnesty Inter- national, Human Rights Watch, Liberal International, ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights, and many of Senator De Lima’s colleagues in the Senate minority bloc; Whereas Maria Ressa, an investigative journalist who found- ed the online news platform Rappler, has been arrested several times on charges against her and her news orga- nization widely viewed by human rights observers and a number of governments as part of a pattern of ‘‘weaponizing the rule of law’’ to repress independent media; and Whereas Ms. Ressa has been released on bail, but she and Rappler still face charges and will soon be standing trial: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Senate— 1 (1) condemns— 2 (A) the Government of the Philippines for 3 its role in state-sanctioned extrajudicial killings 4 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:08 Jan 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR142.ATS SR142 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 SRES 142 ATS by police and other armed individuals as part of 1 the ‘‘War on Drugs’’; 2 (B) the arrest and detention of human 3 rights defenders and political leaders who exer- 4 cise their rights to freedom of expression; 5 (C) the harassment, arrest, and unjustified 6 judicial proceedings against the media and jour- 7 nalists, in particular, the proceeding against 8 Rappler and Maria Ressa; and 9 (D) the continued detention of Senator 10 Leila De Lima; 11 (2) considers Senator De Lima to be a prisoner 12 of conscience, detained solely on account of her polit- 13 ical views and the legitimate exercise of her freedom 14 of expression; 15 (3) calls on the President of the United States 16 to impose sanctions pursuant to the Global 17 Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act (sub- 18 title F of title XII of Public Law 114–328; 22 19 U.S.C. 2656 note) with respect to— 20 (A) members of the security forces and of- 21 ficials of the Government of the Philippines re- 22 sponsible for extrajudicial killings; and 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:08 Jan 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR142.ATS SR142 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 SRES 142 ATS (B) officials of the Government of the Phil- 1 ippines responsible for orchestrating the arrest 2 and prolonged detention of Senator De Lima; 3 (4) calls on the Government of the Philippines 4 to immediately release Senator De Lima, drop all 5 charges against her, remove restrictions on her per- 6 sonal and work conditions, and allow her to fully dis- 7 charge her legislative mandate, especially as Chair of 8 the Committee on Social Justice; 9 (5) calls on the President of the United States 10 to ensure that United States security assistance pro- 11 vided to the Philippine National Police is fully con- 12 sistent with the human rights conditions mandated 13 in section 36 of the Arms Export Control Act ((22 14 U.S.C. 2776)) and section 620M of the Foreign As- 15 sistance Act of 1961, (22 U.S.C. 2378d); 16 (6) urges the Government of the Philippines to 17 recognize the importance of human rights defenders 18 and their work and allow them to operate freely 19 without fear of reprisal; and 20 (7) urges the Government of the Philippines to 21 guarantee the right to the freedom of the press, and 22 to drop all the charges against Maria Ressa and 23 Rappler. 24 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:08 Jan 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\SR142.ATS SR142 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS