UN Special Rapporteur arrives in PH

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 22) — A United Nations expert is in the country to assess the administration's efforts to protect freedom of speech and expression, a Palace office said on Monday.

Irene Khan, special rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, will be in the country until Feb. 2 to visit state institutions and government agencies in Baguio City, Cebu, and Tacloban, the Presidential Task Force on Media Security (PTFoMS) said.

It said Khan will engage with a number of agencies such as 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.

In an earlier statement, PTFoMS said Khan’s visit is a “welcome opportunity to showcase the nation's commitment to openness, transparency, and its vibrant media community highlighted by everyone's right to freely express their opinion.”