UK grants P4.2M to health professionals in PHL

The United Kingdom has granted nearly P4.2 million to a non-government organization in the Philippines to train health professionals in providing proper documentation and expert testimony in human rights cases. In a statement issued Friday, the British Embassy in Manila said it signed a contract with Medical Action Group (MAG), an organization of medical professionals, who will help address the lack of medical documentation standards for torture cases. Lack of documentation often results in the "rejection of medical evidence by the courts on grounds that it was not scientific enough," according to the statement. The embassy pointed out that the effective prosecution of the perpetrators of human rights violations is essential in upholding justice and human rights in the country. "This project will have a direct impact on the ability to investigate and secure prosecutions by improving the quality of medical evidence in court cases," said British Ambassador Stephen Lillie. At least 150 public health doctors will participate in the training from provinces with high incidences of human rights violations, including Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga del Norte, Maguindanao, Surigao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, Northern Samar, Masbate, Metro Manila, Abra and Misamis Occidental. The British Embassy said the training will cover international human rights standards, rights-based approach, and legal medicine for human rights cases. It said the action group-sponsored training courses have already produced positive results. Just recently, the Commission on Human Rights’ Central Mindanao regional office filed a torture case against a police superintendent and his subordinates after it concluded that they mishandled two suspects. The conclusion was based on the medical examination by a MAG-trained physician of the Mindanao Human Rights Action Center, it said. MAG has already forged an agreement with the Commission of Human Rights and the Association of Municipal Health Officers of the Philippines on cooperation in medico-legal investigation of human rights cases. — Jesse Edep/RSJ, GMA News