I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1433 

To suspend the provision of security assistance to the Philippines until the 

Government of the Philippines has made certain reforms to the military 

and police forces, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 7, 2023 

Ms. WILD (for herself, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. GARCI ́A of Illinois, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. POCAN, Mr. RASKIN, Ms. OMAR, Mr. GOMEZ, Mr. GRIJALVA, 

and Ms. NORTON) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Financial Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 

Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within 

the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To suspend the provision of security assistance to the Philippines until the Government of the Philippines has made 

certain reforms to the military and police forces, and 

for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Philippine Human 

5 Rights Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) The United States State Department’s 

4 2021 Human Rights Report on the Philippines 

5 found ‘‘significant human rights issues’’ in the coun6 try, including ‘‘extrajudicial killings, by and on be7 half of the government and nonstate actors; reports 

8 of forced disappearance by and on behalf of the gov9 ernment and nonstate actors; torture by and on be10 half of the government and nonstate actors; harsh 

11 and life-threatening prison conditions; arbitrary de12 tention by and on behalf of the government and 

13 nonstate actors; serious problems with the independ14 ence of the judiciary.’’ The Report also notes, ‘‘seri15 ous restrictions on free expression and media, in16 cluding violence, threats of violence, and unjustified 

17 arrests or prosecutions of journalists, censorship, 

18 and the use of criminal libel laws to punish journal19 ists; high-level and widespread government corrup20 tion; serious government restrictions on or harass21 ment of domestic human rights organizations; and 

22 threats and violence against labor activists’’. 

23 (2) The United Nations Office of the High 

24 Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), re25 ported in September 2022, that major human rights 

26 issues persist in the Philippines, including, ‘‘harassVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:06 Mar 25, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1433.IH H1433

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1 ment, threats, arrests, attacks, red-tagging against 

2 civil society actors, as well as the continued drug re3 lated killings by police,’’ and, ‘‘access to justice for 

4 victims of human rights violations and abuses re5 mained very limited’’. 

6 (3) A 2021 international independent investiga7 tion, Investigate Philippines, found that since 2020, 

8 ‘‘the perpetuation of human rights violations by 

9 State forces has become more institutionalized, 

10 streamlined, and entrenched, and domestic remedies 

11 for such violations are insufficient, ineffective at pro12 viding redress and halting continued abuses’’. Said 

13 investigation further found: police and military 

14 forces are perpetuating violations and obstructing 

15 justice; investigations are not impartial; mechanisms 

16 for civilians to hold police and military accountable 

17 are failing; court protections are inaccessible, slow 

18 and discriminatory; government forces are orches19 trating political repression and militarizing govern20 ance; counterinsurgency activities are targeting law21 yers and denying victims access to counsel; efforts to 

22 challenge unjust laws through legal channels are 

23 being dismissed; public institutions and bodies which 

24 should provide checks and balances or oversight have 

25 been eviscerated or lack clout. 


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1 (4) In a 2023 report, Human Rights Watch re2 ports there has been ‘‘no letup’’ in the War on drugs 

3 in the Philippines under the Ferdinand Marcos Jr. 

4 administration, which leading human rights organi5 zations estimate took up to 30,000 lives under 

6 former President Rodrigo Duterte. 

7 (5) According to the Joint Report of Trade 

8 Unions to the International Labor Organization, 

9 from 2019 to the beginning of 2023, there have been 

10 16 killing of trade unionists, two cases of forced dis11 appearances, 68 cases of arrests and detention, 90 

12 cases of forced disaffiliation, 58 cases of red-tagging, 

13 and 127 cases of intimidation of union leaders and 

14 members. Additionally, the Report notes that the 

15 Government of the Philippines has failed to act on 

16 any previous recommendations by the International 

17 Labor Organization to protect workers’ rights, and 

18 responded directly to recommendations that, ‘‘it re19 quires further clarification as to what constitutes ef20 fective measures to prevent violence against workers; 

21 what constitutes immediate and effective investiga22 tion’’. 

23 (6) In 2022, the International Trade Union 

24 Confederation (ITUC) listed the Philippines as one 

25 of the ‘‘10 worst countries in the world for working 


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1 people’’ for the sixth consecutive year. In its 2022 

2 report, the ITUC stated: ‘‘Workers and their rep3 resentatives in the Philippines remained particularly 

4 vulnerable to violent attacks, intimidation and arbi5 trary arrests. Trade unionists, maliciously red6 tagged by President Duterte, remained under imme7 diate threat from the police and the army, which 

8 conducted targeted raids against them. Over 50 

9 trade unionists have been killed since President 

10 Duterte came to power in 2016’’. 

11 (7) In the first six months of the Marcos ad12 ministration alone, the Alliance for Advancement of 

13 People’s Rights (Karapatan) has documented 17 

14 extrajudicial killings, 165 illegal arrests, 9,159 

15 forced evacuations, and 357,726 cases of harassment 

16 and intimidation. 

17 (8) In 2021, the international NGO Global Wit18 ness declared the Philippines to be the deadliest 

19 country in Asia for environmental activists for the 

20 ninth consecutive year. Since President Duterte took 

21 office in 2016, 30 environmentalists, 54 indigenous 

22 people, and 207 farmers and peasants have been 

23 extrajudicially killed. Included in the targeting of en24 vironmental activists during this timeframe, was 

25 United States citizen, Brandon Lee, who was subVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:06 Mar 25, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1433.IH H1433

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1 jected to an assassination attempt on August 6, 

2 2019. Brandon Lee has been subjected to repeated 

3 threats and harassment by the Philippine military 

4 due to his advocacy relating to the land and rights 

5 of indigenous people in Ifugao province and the sur6 rounding Cordillera region of the Philippines. While 

7 Brandon Lee survived the attack, he has been left 

8 paralyzed and his assailants have not been brought 

9 to justice. 

10 (9) Philippine State actors have targeted law11 yers, judges, and politicians for repression. Accord12 ing to the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers, 133 

13 Filipino lawyers have been murdered over the past 

14 40 years, with 59 being murdered during Duterte’s 

15 6-year term as President. 

16 (10) Since February 2017, Senator Leila de 

17 Lima, vocal critic of the Government of the Phil18 ippines’ human rights violations, has been jailed on 

19 spurious charges. Amnesty International, other lead20 ing human rights organizations, and the Working 

21 Group on Arbitrary Detention in the Office of the 

22 United Nations High Commissioner for Human 

23 Rights have documented the fabricated charges, co24 erced testimonies, and other violations of Senator de 

25 Lima’s rights that have occurred. This case reflects 


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1 a broader pattern, with authorities in the Philippines 

2 consistently targeting political opposition leaders 

3 through politically motivated, spurious charges. 

4 (11) It is widely recognized that the Govern5 ment of the Philippines silences dissent and the 

6 press. In May 2020, ABS-CBN, one of the Phil7 ippines’ two major sources of news, and an occa8 sional critic of Duterte’s policies, was forced off air 

9 due to the denial of a franchise license by the Con10 gress of the Philippines, at the behest of the Duterte 

11 administration. Similarly, Maria Ressa, a vocal critic 

12 of the repressive practices of State security forces, 

13 recipient of the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize, and found14 er of the digital news site Rappler was convicted of 

15 cyber libel in June 2020. Multiple journalists critical 

16 of the Government, including Percy Lapid—a radio 

17 broadcaster and critic of the Marcos administration 

18 who was killed in October 2022—have been mur19 dered since the beginning of the Marcos administra20 tion. And according to Freedom House’s 2022 re21 port on the Philippines, ‘‘impunity remains the norm 

22 for violent crimes against activists and journalists’’. 

23 (12) On March 7, 2021, nine activists were 

24 killed in a joint operation conducted by the Phil25 ippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the 


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1 Philippines in an event widely referred to as ‘‘Bloody 

2 Sunday’’ in the Philippines. Included in those who 

3 were killed by State security forces was labor leader 

4 Emmanuel ‘‘Manny’’ Asuncion. The Philippines’ De5 partment of Justice has declined to prosecute indi6 viduals implicated in the murder of Manny Asun7 cion, as well as in the murders of other activists. 

8 This failure to bring perpetrators to justice reflects 

9 the systemic lack of accountability within Philippine 

10 State security forces and prosecutorial agencies. 

11 (13) On July 3, 2020, the Anti-Terrorism Act 

12 of the Philippines was passed into law. While pur13 porting to counter terrorism, the bill rolls back many 

14 civil liberties by lessening requirements for judicial 

15 warrants, allows for extended pre-trial detention, 

16 and allows for the prosecution of conduct that is 

17 considered protected political speech. The Anti-Ter18 rorism Act is viewed by many as a threat to Free19 dom of Speech in the Philippines. Representative 

20 Jan Schakowsky, along with 49 other members of 

21 the United States Congress, urged the Government 

22 of the Philippines to repeal ‘‘this repressive legisla23 tion’’. 

24 (14) The practice of ‘‘red-tagging’’, wherein the 

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1 mental organizations as terrorists, has been growing 

2 in the Philippines, including the red-tagging of over3 seas Filipinos, United States citizens, and Philippine 

4 election observers. This tactic is used to isolate indi5 viduals or groups and chill political speech, and in 

6 many cases, mark them for harassment or assassina7 tion by Philippines security or paramilitary forces. 

8 (15) The Government of the Philippines fails to 

9 cooperate in matters of international law, including 

10 the International Criminal Court investigation into 

11 alleged crimes committed in the Philippines between 

12 November 1, 2011, and March 16, 2019, in the con13 text of the so-called ‘‘war on drugs’’ campaign. 

14 (16) The Armed Forces of the Philippines uses 

15 tactics of strafing and aerial bombings in military 

16 operations that have killed dozens and displaced 

17 thousands of civilians. In 2017, Armed Forces con18 ducted a widespread bombing campaign on Marawi 

19 City, displacing 400,000 people and destroying the 

20 city. In 2019, AFP bombings in Mindanao displaced 

21 300 Indigenous People. In November 2021, peace 

22 advocates called for a stop to ongoing aerial bomb23 ings in Bukidnon. In February 2022, the Armed 

24 Forces dropped at least 30 bombs in Cagayan Valley 

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1 tober 2022, the 94th infantry battalion conducted 

2 strafing and bombings in Negros Occidental, result3 ing in over 15,000 evacuees. 

4 (17) The United States continues to provide ro5 bust assistance to state security forces of the Phil6 ippines. Despite clear documentation of abuses and 

7 international condemnation, in April 2020, the 

8 United States announced a pair of arms sales total9 ing $2,000,000,000 for items including hellfire mis10 siles and attack helicopters. In July 2020, the 

11 United States announced an additional sale of 

12 $126,000,000 worth of assault boats and arma13 ments. In October 2022, the United States provided 

14 $100,000,000 in military financing. 

15 SEC. 3. SUSPENSION OF SECURITY ASSISTANCE. 

16 (a) SUSPENSION OF SECURITY ASSISTANCE.—No 

17 Federal funds are authorized to be appropriated or other18 wise made available to provide assistance for the police 

19 or military of the Philippines, including assistance in the 

20 form of equipment or training, until the date described 

21 in subsection (d). 

22 (b) LOANS FROM MULTILATERAL DEVELOPMENT

23 BANKS.—The President shall instruct United States rep24 resentatives at multilateral development banks to vote 


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1 against providing any loans to the police or military of 

2 the Philippines. 

3 (c) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than 180 days 

4 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Inspectors 

5 General of the Department of State and Department of 

6 Defense shall jointly submit to the Committee on Foreign 

7 Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Com8 mittee on Foreign Relations of the Senate a report that— 

9 (1) specifies all forms of security assistance or 

10 loans made available to the Philippine National Po11 lice or the Armed Forces of the Philippines, includ12 ing any organizations or individuals operating with 

13 the authority of the Philippine National Police or 

14 the Armed Forces of the Philippines, by the United 

15 States or by multilateral development banks during 

16 the period beginning January 1, 2016, and ending 

17 on the date of the submission of the report; 

18 (2) contains all reports generated by recipients 

19 of United States security assistance or loans from 

20 multilateral development banks to the Philippines 

21 with respect to the use, investment, or transfer of 

22 such assistance or loans; and 

23 (3) details any and all misuses of security as24 sistance and loans during the period beginning Jan25 uary 1, 2016, and ending on the date of the submisVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:06 Mar 25, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1433.IH H1433

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1 sion of the report by the Philippine National Police, 

2 the Armed Forces of the Philippines, or any affili3 ated groups or individuals, such as extrajudicial 

4 killings, intimidation of political opponents, illegal 

5 sales under Philippine or international law, or mis6 appropriation. 

7 (d) CONDITIONS FOR LIFTING SUSPENSION OF AS8 SISTANCE.—The suspension of security assistance under 

9 subsection (a) shall terminate on the date on which the 

10 Secretary of State certifies to the Committee on Foreign 

11 Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Com12 mittee on Foreign Relations of the Senate that the Gov13 ernment of the Philippines has— 

14 (1) investigated and successfully prosecuted 

15 members of military and police forces who have vio16 lated human rights, ensured that the military and 

17 police cooperated in such cases, and affirmed that 

18 such violations have ceased; 

19 (2) withdrawn the military from involvement in 

20 domestic policing activities, in accordance with the 

21 Philippine Constitution, and ensured that all domes22 tic police functions are separated from the military 

23 chain of command and are instead directly respon24 sible to civilian authorities; 


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1 (3) established that it effectively protects the 

2 rights of trade unionists, journalists, human rights 

3 defenders, critics of the Government, faith and reli4 gious leaders, and other civil society activists to op5 erate without interference; 

6 (4) taken effective steps to guarantee a judicial 

7 system that is capable of investigating, prosecuting, 

8 and bringing to justice members of the police and 

9 military who have committed human rights abuses; 

10 and 

11 (5) fully complied with domestic and United 

12 States audits and investigations regarding the im13 proper use of prior security assistance. 

Æ 


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