The UN Refugee Agency supports the inter-agency agreement on the protection of asylum seekers, refugees, and stateless persons in the Philippines. The initiative is the culmination of planning of 16 government agencies.
UNHCR Philippines Head of Field Office Michel Huyghe (center) lauded the ongoing efforts of the Philippine government to allow POCs to access services of the State.
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, lauds the signing of the inter-agency agreement on the protection of asylum seekers, refugees, and stateless persons in the Philippines in a ceremony last 12 October 2017.
The signing ceremony is the culmination of a series of planning and discussions of 16 government agencies, including the Judiciary, which began in December 2015, to streamline Government services extended to asylum seekers, refugees, stateless persons and other persons of concern (POCs). In the absence of a national legislation on refugee protection, this agreement will serve as a legal instrument institutionalizing government services that POCs can access.
Chief State Counsel Ricardo V. Paras III of the Department of Justice (DOJ) – Refugees and Stateless Persons Protection Unit, in his welcoming remarks during the ceremony, commended the Government units for their continued cooperation in forging the agreement.
UNHCR Philippines Head of Field Office Michel Huyghe lauded the ongoing efforts of the Philippine government to allow POCs to access services of the State.
Aside from the DOJ, the Department of Foreign Affairs, Department of Education, Department of Labor and Employment, Department of Health, Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Department of the Interior and Local Government, Commission on Higher Education, Public Attorney’s Office, Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, and Philippine Health Insurance Corporation were also present at the signing ceremony.
A state party to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol, the Philippines has a long history in extending support to refugees and asylum seekers. UNHCR is mandated to work with the state to protect and support refugees, asylum seekers, and stateless persons.
Note to the Editor:
The Department of Justice served as the leading agency in this endeavor.
For inquiries, please contact:
UNHCR Philippines Protection Unit
[email protected], (02) 403 2336
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