Migrants Rights Observatory

The Migrants Rights Observatory monitors the compliance of the Philippine government with the Migrant Workers Convention and relevant treaties, domestic laws and policies that promote and protect the rights of migrant workers and members of their families.

Access documents related to migrants rights

The Commission on Human Rights of the Philippines (CHR) has established the Migrants Rights Observatory to develop tools and resources to monitor compliance of the Philippine government with international and national human rights mechanisms, which particularly protect migrants rights, including the rights of overseas Filipino workers, the Filipino diaspora, members of their families and migrants in the Philippines.
This current database houses the Supreme Court cases from 1996 to present concerning labor migration. By identifying the nature of case, types of rights violation/s and location of where the violations happened, the Commission will be able to analyze 1) where the challenges lie in fully implementing laws and policies that aim to protect the rights and welfare of OFWs and their families, 2) discern gaps in States initiatives and 3) advocate for human rights based approaches to labor migration.
The Commission acknowledges the work of the Lawyers Beyond Borders Philippines, particularly their publication, “Philippine Jurisprudence on Overseas Employment (1995-2015)” as it serves a very valuable resource in identifying the nature of cases.
Furthermore, there is a need for a more systematic approach to responding not only to rights violation cases, but also on structural causes of human rights violations against overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and members of their families. As such, CHR is in the process of drafting a baseline study on the human rights situation of overseas Filipino workers and members of their families and are developing indicators to monitor treaty compliance of government, as well as rights-based protocols for reporting, referral, and monitoring of cases of OFWs and their families.
These indicators and protocols are going to be the basis of the Migrants Rights Observatory in tracking the progress of the State's responsibility to respect, protect and fulfill human rights of migrant workers and members of their families. The CHR is collaborating with its civil society partners such as the Blas F. Ople Policy Center and Training Institute, Center for Migrant Advocacy and Migrant Forum in Asia to enhance reporting and monitoring of initiatives of the State in migrants rights promotion and protection.
This database continues to evolve as the Commission finalizes the baseline study and protocols for reporting, referral and monitoring of cases.

Latest Supreme Court cases pertaining to OFWs

CHARNNEL SHANE THOMAS, PETITIONER, VS. RACHEL TRONO AND THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES, RESPONDENTS

Jurisprudence

TORM SHIPPING PHILIPPINES, INC., TORM S/A, PETITIONERS, VS. PAMFILO A. ALACRE, RESPONDENT.

Jurisprudence

BLUE MANILA, INC. AND/OR OCEANWIDE CREW MANILA, INC., PETITIONERS, VS. ANTONIO R. JAMIAS, RESPONDENT

Jurisprudence

Supreme Court Cases by Year

DISCLAIMER

By using this CHR website, you agree to all the disclaimers and terms of use governing the database of the Migrants Rights Observatory.
The documents in this database are sourced from the official websites of the Supreme Court of the Philippines, and from the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the International Labour Organization, websites that are accessible to the public. These documents focusing on human rights and migration have not been edited, altered or tampered in any way. They are compiled in this database for easier access to those needing such information. They are included for informational purposes only and do not not represent legal advice. Users are hereby placed under notice that they should take appropriate precautions to verify such information.