PHM-Exch> Continuous harassment of health workers in other places of the country Philippines

[Claudio Schuftan]

From: CHD ManCom chdmancom at gmail.com
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February 24, 2010
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*Continuous harassment of health workers in other places of the country*

The harassment and intimidation of health workers continue to spread around
the country.  The incidents following the illegal arrest, detention, and
continuous torture of 43 health workers on February 6 send a chilling effect
among health professionals alike who are rendering services in rural
communities.

On February 10, two staff with two Swedish exchange students of the Mobile
Nursing Clinic (MNC) of the Saint Louis University (SLU) in Baguio City.
They were accosted by personnel of the Philippine National Police (PNP) when
they were coordinating for a presentation of MNC entry plans with the
Sangguniang Bayan in one of the municipalities of Benguet. The lady police
officer told the coordinator of MNC that “her boss” wanted to get their
names and needed to know why they were in the area.  She said that they were
on red alert since the incident in Morong, Rizal happened.

This string of incidents against health workers of community-based health
programs shows the AFP’s brazenness and utter disrespect of human rights.
Health workers are continuously subjected to persecution for mere
allegations and suspicions of “subversive “association.

“We call on the attention of the European Union and other international
agencies who believe in the sanctity of human rights to state their
positions regarding the continuous and aggravating harassments of health
workers in the Philippines.  We likewise enjoin the entire Filipino people
and the international community to put pressure on the Philippine government
and the AFP to stop the harassment of health workers all over the country.
We also enjoin everybody to demand for a stop to the torture and illegal
detention of the 43 health workers,” Dr. Eleanor A. Jara, Executive Director
of the Council for Health and Development concluded.##
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