House gives human rights victims until May 2015 to file claims

The House of Representatives has approved on third and final reading a measure extending the period for the filing of claims by victims of human rights violations during the Marcos regime from November 2014 to May next year.

 

Lawmakers rushed to pass Joint Resolution No. 16 before it adjourned Wednesday, and in time for the November 10 deadline for human rights victims to apply for reparation and recognition.
 

The six-month extension is seen to benefit human rights violation victims or their legal claimants in far-flung areas, who may be having difficulty filing an application for compensation with the Human Rights Victims’ Claims Board (HRVCB).

 

Under Republic Act 10368, or the Human Rights Victims Reparation and Recognition Act of 2013, a victim or his legal claimant’s failure to file an application with HRVCB by Nov. 10, 2014 is deemed a waiver of his right to seek compensation. The board started processing application last May.

 

As of October 2014, HRVCB has received only around 29,000 claims, lower than the 55,000 to 90,000 applications expected by officials.

 

Akbayan party-list Rep. Ibarra Gutierrez, who filed the joint resolution along with fellow Akbayan lawmaker Walden Bello, lauded the House leaders and his colleagues for taking “a decisive stand…[to] bring justice and redress to the thousands of victims of martial law.”

 

“Through the passage of the resolution extending the deadline of the filing of reparation claims for the human rights victims, we are giving [them] the full opportunity to get the recognition they deserve for their sacrifices in protecting this nation’s liberties and freedom,” he said in a statement Thursday. —NB, GMA News