2 2020 Annual Report on the Human Rights Situation in the Philippines Indigenous peoples (IP) students also struggled to keep up with the online classes not only due to the aforementioned access to ICT infrastructure but physical access to enrolment due to the remoteness of the area of residence and inadequate educational assistance slots for IP youth.1 Another ESC Right that is gravely affected is that of the right to work. The devastating effects of the strictest and longest lockdown in the world forced many small and medium enterprises that provide the bulk of employment in the country to either limit their operations or close entirely to prevent further losses. Historic job losses were noted by the country’s labor authorities. This prompted the government’s duty bearers to provide social amelioration programs for members of this key sector of society. Due to the scale and lingering effects of present restrictions, such assistance had been deemed inadequate by displaced workers in the country. The report presents data on various core obligations by the Philippine state against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic. Among these are the following: (1) access to health facilities, goods and services on a non – discriminatory basis; (2) provision of essential drugs; (3) equitable distribution of all health facilities; and (4) adoption and implementation of a national public health strategy and plan of action that addresses the health concerns of the whole population. The report also provides several recommendations that the CHR considers as necessary to improve the human rights situation in the country. Duty-bearers that have a responsibility for COVID-19 response have been identified. Inputs for ensuring that the right to health is fully protected have been provided. The global effects of COVID-19 forced the repatriation of hundreds of thousands of Filipino migrant workers. As a policy response, the State provided financial assistance to these displaced workers. Additional mechanisms to process entry of returning migrant workers were put in place in major transit points. Livelihood assistance programs were likewise initiated. CHR Region I reiterates the importance of a sustained and intensified advocacy and information dissemination on migrant workers even during the pandemic.2 The prolonged lockdown also affected other workers in the Philippines, such as farmers and fisherfolk. State authorities also provided those belonging to the agricultural and fisheries sector. Small-time farmers and fisherfolks became recipients of government subsidies. Owing to the nature of this unprecedented challenge, as well as the attendant policies, medical workers have taken the brunt of the effects of COVID-19 imposed by State authorities. There are reports from CHR Regional Offices CAR, III, IV-CALABARZON, and CARAGA that medical workers only received a few thousand pesos once or twice during enhanced community quarantine (ECQ)/general community quarantine (GCQ). The implementation of SAP also varied per LGU – some received less than others. 3 4 5 6 An alarming number of health workers were afflicted by COVID-19 in part as a result of the initial late or inadequate response by the government of the virulence of the disease and the scale of the pandemic. Moreover, adverse working conditions and inordinate work hours as well as late payment or non-payment of hazard pay contributed to the problems faced by healthcare workers in the Philippines. Compounding the challenges faced by both rights-holders and duty-bearers are the natural disasters that forced hundreds of families to be 1 Regional reports ( January to June) from Regions IX, CAR, and Caraga. 2 Recommendation from CHR Region I (2020). Regional Situation Report on Migrants January to June 2020. 3 CHR CAR (2020, July 30). Regional Human Rights Situation Report January to June 2020, p. 36. 4 CHR Region III (2021). Human Rights Regional Situationer Report Region III – Central Luzon January to December 2020, pp. 56. 5 CHR Region IV-A (2021, Jan. 29) 2020 Report on the Human Rights Situation of Disadvantaged, Marginalized and Vulnerable Sectors in Region IV-A (CALABARZON), pp. 3, 41, 47. 6 CHR CARAGA (2021, Jan. 29) What Kind of Year Has It Been: A Report on the Human Rights Situation in CARAGA Region During the 2020 COVID-19 Pandemic, pp. 18.