Commission on Human Rights

June 7, 2016 CEDAW Secretariat Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights Palais Wilson -52, rue des Pâquis CH-1201 Geneva, Switzerland Re: Supplementary information on the Philippines, scheduled for review by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women during its 64th session The Catholics for Reproductive Health, Center for Reproductive Rights (the Center), EnGendeRights, International Women’s Rights Action Watch Asia Pacific (IWRAWAP), Population Services Pilipinas Inc. (PSPI), WomanHealth Philippines Inc., and Women’s Global Network for Reproductive Rights (WGNRR) have prepared this letter to assist the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (the Committee) in its review of the Government of the Philippines’ (state party) compliance with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (Convention) during its 64th session on July 4-22, 2016. The undersigned organizations welcome the Committee following up on its special inquiry into the status of women’s reproductive rights in the Philippines and raising questions about the lack of access to contraceptive information and services including emergency contraception, safe and legal abortion, humane post-abortion care and access to justice, in its list of issues (LOIs) in relation to the state party’s combined seventh and eighth periodic reports (state party report).1 This letter provides updates to the pre-session letter submitted by the Center, EnGendeRights, IWRAW-AP, WGNRR, WomanHealth Philippines Inc., and PSPI in October 2015 (Annex I), and discusses the ongoing legal, policy and implementation barriers to women’s reproductive rights in the Philippines. It also provides supplemental information on the issues raised by the Committee and by the state party in its reply to the list of issues and questions.2 The state party, particularly the Philippine Commission on Human Rights (CHR), should be commended for undertaking its first ever national inquiry, which focuses on women’s reproductive health and rights in March-May 2016. The state party particularly the Department of Health (DoH) should also be commended for taking steps to initiate a review of the Pregnancy and Management of Abortion and its Complications (PMAC)