H.Human Rights Defenders There were 8 (eight) cases regarding human rights defender received by this office for the period of January to June 2020. The victims in all these cases were part of organizations which advocates civil and political rights. Three (3) of the cases involves personnel from the media who were members of progressive groups as well. Four (4) of the cases involves youth groups which are actively campaigning for civil and political rights. One case involves civil society organization advocating for indigenous peoples rights. One case involves a person who was linked to the CPP NPA due to his personal relationship with an alleged top leader of the CPP NPA. As was observed, these organizations are critical to the Duterte Administrations crackdown on illegal drugs and are calling for transparency on the government expenses especially during the COVID19 pandemic. I. Farmers Many vulnerable sectors have been affected by the onset of the Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic here in Cordillera. The agricultural sector was one of the most hard hit as economic mobility and other related activities were restricted. This led to bankruptcy of Cordilleran farmers who incurred huge losses and debt. According to news reports, due to the implementation of Luzon wide community quarantine, Cordillera farmers are suffering from inevitable loss due to the low demand of vegetables caused by the limited movement of consumers. The flower industry has also suffered a lot which led to its wilting and being left to rot. Agricultural technicians have submitted losses from harvestable flowers which continue each day. Although affected as well by the pandemic, Cordilleran farmers have been helping communities nationwide by distributing their harvests to different provinces and barangays. But through online platforms initiated by the Department of Agriculture – Cordillera Administrative Region (DA-CAR), in partnership with private individuals and organizations, the burden of farmers slowly reduced. Social media pages were used as a bridge to link farmers and consumers. The national government through DA-CAR has also given help to affected farmers. DA official said that the agency has extended assistance to 1,155 farmers in CAR under its Expanded Survival and 42 P a g e CHR CAR REGIONAL HR SITUATION REPORT – JANUARY to JUNE 2020