Former Philippines NHRI chair joins ASEAN rights body

Loretta Rosales, former Chairperson of the Commission on Human Rights, has been appointed as the Philippines' representative to ASEAN's human rights body.

Ms Rosales was recently sworn into her new role with the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR). She will serve a three-year term.

In nominating her to the position, the current Chairperson of the Commission on Human Rights praised Ms Rosales' "dynamic leadership of the CHR" and said she had "contributed immensely to the promotion and protection of human rights in the country".

Jose Luis Martin Gascon said that Ms Rosales had trailblazed the mainstreaming of community-based human rights mechanisms with local government, pursued human rights reforms within the security sector, and made a unique contribution to Bangsamoro peace process by establishing a regional human rights office for the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao.

Ms Rosales will provide "vibrant leadership toward a more meaningful and responsive intergovernmental mechanism" and "help shape ASEAN's human rights culture in this period of regional integration", Mr Gascon said.

Date: 22 March 2016