Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla and United Nations Special Rapporteur Irene Khan are scheduled to meet along with other officials of the Department of Justice.

Justice Undersecretary Margarita Gutierrez announced on PTV’s Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon program that the meeting will focus on enhancing and fortifying the country’s justice system, freedom of expression, and adherence to the rule of law.

Gutierrez anticipates that Khan, who specializes in the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, will engage in discussions with the DoJ to address the government’s initiatives aimed at strengthening the justice system, promoting freedom of expression, and upholding the rule of law.

Khan is scheduled to be in the country from 23 January to 2 February.

As per the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Khan’s official country visit aims to examine, in the spirit of cooperation and dialogue, the situation of the rights to freedom of opinion and expression in the Philippines.

 Khan will meet with the Presidential Human Rights Committee, Anti-Terrorism Council Program Management Center, National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict, Department of Justice, Department of Foreign Affairs, Supreme Court, House of Representatives, Department of the Interior and Local Government, and the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples.

Also, Khan wanted participation from civil society, human rights organizations, media entities, experts, academics, and other stakeholders to share information or insights on national laws, regulations, and policies related to freedom of opinion and expression.

They will discuss the right to information, regulations on disinformation and hate speech, their implementation, freedom of the media, internet freedom, and the expression of specific groups, including civic organizations, religious groups, indigenous peoples, and marginalized communities.

Khan is the third UN special rapporteur to visit the country in over a year. 

The others are Fatimah Singhateh, special rapporteur on the sale and exploitation of children, who visited in November 2022, followed by Ian Fry, special rapporteur on Climate Change and Human Rights, in November 2023.