De Lima hopes to meet UN special rapporteur in Switzerland

MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Leila De Lima said on Thursday that she hopes to meet the United Nations rapporteur on extrajudicial killings in Switzerland next month.

In a press statement, De Lima said that she would like to meet Agnes Callamard, the UN Special Rapporteur on Summary Executions, in Geneva, Switzerland if she would be allowed to attend the 15th International Film Festival and Forum on Human Rights on March 18.

De Lima was invited to the international event dedicated to cinema and human rights, which is held on the sidelines of the annual session of the UN Human Rights Council.

De Lima is facing three drug-related charges and may be be ordered arrested by a court before then. She believes that these cases are part of the government’s retaliation because of her criticisms of the government’s anti-drugs campaign that has left more than 7,000 individuals dead.

The senator said that she would also have the change to meet Ruth Dreifus, former president of the Swiss Confederation and chairperson of the Global Commission on Drug Policy.

If allowed, the former Justice secretary will also have the chance to meet Liliane Maury Pasquier, a Swiss senior senator and co-president of the Parliamentary Intergroup on Addiction Policy, Prevention and Youth Protection.

De Lima was invited to the international event because of her “tireless advocacy” of human rights in the Philippines.

“Your tireless advocacy of the respect of fundamental rights in your country has earned you the unanimous respect and admiration of the human rights community around the world,” General Director Isabelle Gattiker said in the letter inviting her to the film festival.

De Lima has filed Senate Resolution 153 urging the Department of Foreign Affairs to invite Callamard to investigate into the spate of extrajudicial killings amid the government’s intensified campaign against illicit drugs. Resolutions are non-binding and only communicate the sense of position of the Senate on an issue.