Operationalization of the UNGP BHR in the Philippines The Working Group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises (also referred to as the Working Group on Business and Human Rights/UNWG), mandated by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to promote the effective and comprehensive implementation of the UNGP BHR, noted in its 2016 Guidance on Business and Human Rights that National Action Plans (NAPs) can be an important means to promote the implementation of the UNGP BHR (DIHR, n.d.). In the Philippines, the Presidential Human Rights Committee (PHRC), the primary advisory body to the Office of the President in effectively addressing all human rights concerns/ issues in the country, is tasked to initiate the formulation of the NAP of the UNGP BHR. In November 2016, the PHRC held a government consultation on a National Action Plan for Business and Human Rights. PHRC subsequently informed representatives participating in the dissemination forum on concluding observations of the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (UNCESCR), that the country will be embarking on the formulation of the 3rd Philippine National Human Rights Action Plan, 2018-2022. The said plan will set out the activities and targets, including monitoring and reporting activities, covering the eight core human rights treaties to the Philippines has committed to (NEDA, 2017). To date, the country has yet to produce a NAP on the UNGP BHR. It remains uncertain whether the Philippine National Human Rights Action Pan will include a section on business and human rights, or whether a separate NAP is to be developed (DIHR, n.d.). However, while the UNGP BHR is still not fully in place in the country, these have started to be implemented and operationalized. A key step is the building of awareness among relevant constituencies and development of indicators towards monitoring business corporations’ observance of UNGP BHR and other international covenants. Building Awareness on the UNGP BHR The UNGP on Business and Human Rights was activated by the CHR during the leadership of former Executive Director Jacqueline Mejia and then Chairperson Etta Rosales. The latter started popularizing the UNGP BHR by facilitating forums with the sectors interested in mining, land rights, and agrarian 76 Upholding Land Rights amidst the Land Rush