Since her non-bailable detainment in February 2017 – days after receiving international acclaim for her campaign against the alleged extrajudicial killings linked to President Rodrigo Duterte’s “drug war”— Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA) has rallied in support of Philippines Senator Leila de Lima. In the intervening years, PGA’s members have repeatedly raised Senator de Lima’s case through parliamentary statements, high-level meetings, and resolutions.
November 19, 2019, marked the grim milestone of the 1,000 day of Sen. de Lima’s unlawful incarceration. The very next day, gathered together at this year’s PGA Annual Forum in Praia, Cape Verde, 38 PGA members from 22 parliaments joined a petition to #FreeLeilaNow, calling for Senator de Lima’s immediate release. Shortly thereafter, on 12 December 2019, the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee passed a resolution, sponsored by PGA Member U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) with broad bipartisan support, calling on The Philippines government to release Senator de Lima and drop criminal charges against the founder of a news website critical of the administration of President Duterte (similar legislation has also passed the U.S. House of Representatives).
Unfortunately, Sen. de Lima’s case underscores a troubling trend, not only for the rule of law in The Philippines, but for the rights of parliamentarians worldwide, who increasingly experience intimidation, attacks, and personal reprisals for defending democratic principles. In response, PGA’s Campaign for Democratic Renewal and Human Rights aims to provide global peer support. PGA partnered on the campaign with the Montreal-based Raoul Wallenberg Human Rights Centre (RWHRC), led by Professor Irvin Cotler, which provides legal defense for political prisoners, including Sen. de Lima.
PGA’s global membership stands shoulder-to-shoulder in support of Senator de Lima and all prisoners of conscience and has demonstrated their readiness to utilize both their national domestic legislative processes and international platforms to advocate for her immediate release.
