(b) Com m ission on Hum an Rights The Commission on Human Rights is an independent commission established by article XIII of the 1987 Philippine Constitution. Its stipulated mandate is to conduct independent investigations into alleged human rights violations, facilitate research and education to promote human rights, recommend to congress appropriate legislative measures to enhance the protection of human rights and monitor the Philippine Government’s compliance with international human rights treaties, among other things. In the area of housing and urban development, the NCR Office of the CHR regularly conducts investigations into forced evictions and makes submissions to various government housing bodies in relation to evictions and demolition. The NCR Office also monitors evictions and resettlement within Metro Manila, undertaking occasional reviews of conditions in government provided relocation sites. In this respect, the CHR is the leading government body dealing with the human rights of informal settlers and the urban poor, especially in the context of eviction and resettlement. Despite its strong constitutional mandate, the CHR is not recognised to have enforcement powers under Philippine law during and subsequent to evictions. (c) Partnership Agenda The partnership between IPD and the CHR is founded on the central premise that collaboration between civil society and government will enhance the quality of any law reform agenda. The current project between IPD and the CHR has explored a new approach to advocating for law reform, to bridge the gap between civil society and government by establishing a formal, consensus-based partnership to promote policy and institutional change. Both IPD and the CHR have a common interest in promoting the enjoyment of human rights in the Philippines and have contributed jointly to the activities involved in this review. xvi