WHEREAS, in order to bring the religious and cultural significance of the Eid'l Fitr to the fore of national consciousness, it is necessary to declare Friday, 9 August 2013, as a regular holiday throughout the country. NOW, THEREFORE, I, BENIGNO S. AQUINO III, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby declare Friday, 9 August 2013, as a regular holiday throughout the country in observance of Eid'l Fitr (Feast of Ramadhan). The Eid'l Fitr Prayer shall be performed depending on the result of the moon-sighting activity on 7 August 2013. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the Republic of the Philippines to be affixed. DONE in the City of Manila, this 1st day of August, in the year of Our Lord, Two Thousand and Thirteen. (Sgd.) BENIGNO SIMEON AQUINO III [SEAL] President of the Philippines By the President: (Sgd.) PAQUITO N. OCHOA, JR. Executive Secretary MALACAÑANG MANILA PROCLAMATION No. 630 DECLARING FRIDAY, 16 AUGUST 2013, AS A SPECIAL (NON-WORKING) DAY IN THE CITY OF DAVAO WHEREAS, the City of Davao observes in August the week-long celebration of the "Kadayawan Festival"; WHEREAS, to enable the people of the City of Davao to participate in the event, the Sangguniang Panlungsod requested that Friday, 16 August 2013, be declared a special non-working holiday; WHEREAS, it is but fitting and proper that the people of the City of Davao be given full opportunity to celebrate and participate in the occasion with appropriate ceremonies. NOW, THEREFORE, I, PAQUITO N. OCHOA, JR., Executive Secretary, by authority of His Excellency, BENIGNO S. AQUINO III, do hereby declare Friday, 16 August 2013, as a special (non-working) day in the City of Davao. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the Republic of the Philippines to be affixed. DONE in the City of Manila, this 1st day of August, in the year of Our Lord, Two Thousand and Thirteen. By authority of the President: (Sgd.) PAQUITO N. OCHOA, JR. [SEAL] Executive Secretary MALACAÑANG MANILA PROCLAMATION No. 631 DECLARING FRIDAY, 16 AUGUST 2013, AS A SPECIAL (NON-WORKING) DAY IN THE CITY OF TUGUEGARAO WHEREAS, the City of Tuguegarao marks the celebration of the "289th patronal feast dubbed as Pavvurulun Festival 2013" on Friday, 16 August 2013; WHEREAS, it is but fitting and proper that the people of the City of Tuguegarao be given full opportunity to celebrate and participate in the occasion with appropriate ceremonies. NOW, THEREFORE, I, PAQUITO N. OCHOA, JR., Executive Secretary, by authority of His Excellency, BENIGNO S. AQUINO III, do hereby declare Friday, 16 August 2013, as a special (non-working) day in the City of Tuguegarao. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the Republic of the Philippines to be affixed. DONE in the City of Manila, this 2nd day of August, in the year of Our Lord, Two Thousand and Thirteen. MALACAÑANG MANILA EXECUTIVE ORDER No. 138 AMENDING EXECUTIVE ORDER (EO) NO. 56 (S. 2001) ADOPTING THE COMPREHENSIVE PROGRAM FRAMEWORK FOR CHILDREN IN ARMED CONFLICT, STRENGTHENING THE COUNCIL FOR THE WELFARE OF CHILDREN (CWC) AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES WHEREAS, Section 3, Article XV of the 1987 Constitution mandates the State to defend the right of children to assistance and special protection from all forms of neglect, abuse, cruelty, exploitation and other conditions prejudicial to their to their development; WHEREAS, the Philippine Government enacted Republic Act (RA) No. 7610, otherwise known as the, "Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act," declaring children as Zones of Peace and affirming the State policy of protecting and rehabilitating children gravely threatened or endangered by circumstances affecting their survival and normal development; WHEREAS, Our general obligation as a State Party to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and its Optional Protocol on Children in Armed Conflict enjoins us to take all feasible measures to ensure that children under the age of eighteen are not recruited compulsorily into our Armed Forces and that members thereof who are under eighteen years of age do not take direct part in hostilities; WHEREAS, EO No. 56 adopted the Comprehensive Program Framework for Children in Armed Conflict (CIAC Program Framework) which addresses the alarming involvement of children in armed conflict, either as combatants, couriers, guides, spies, medics, cooks, or their recruitment for sexual purposes or in any other similar, non-combatant capacity and directs national government agencies and Local Government Units (LGUS) to implement the same, under the leadership of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP); WHEREAS, a Memorandum of Agreement was executed in 2007, constituting the Interagency Committee on Children in Armed Conflict (IAC-CIAC) which took on the task of implementing EO No. 56; WHEREAS, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution Nos. 1539 (s. 2004) and 1612 (s. 2005) strongly urge Member States to establish a Monitoring and Reporting System on Grave Child Rights Violations in Situations of Armed Conflict, namely: 1) killing and maiming; 2) recruitment and use of children; 3) attack on schools and hospitals; 4) abduction of children; 5) rape and other grave sexual violence against children; and, 6) denial of humanitarian access; WHEREAS, UNSC Resolution Nos. 1883 (s. 2009) and 1998 (s. 2011) call upon Member States to take decisive and immediate action against abuses committed against children in situations of armed conflict and bring violators thereof to justice through international justice mechanisms and domestic criminal courts and call for the integration of post-conflict recovery and reconstruction planning, programs and strategies; and, WHEREAS, Section 31, Chapter 10, Title III, Book III of the Administrative Code of 1987 provides for the continuing authority of the President to reorganize the administrative structure of the Office of the President. NOW, THEREFORE, I, BENIGNO S. AQUINO III, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby amend EO No. 56; SECTION 1. Implementation of the CIAC Program Framework.-The functions of OPAPP as lead agency in coordinating and monitoring the implementation of the CIAC Program Framework, as enhanced and approved by the CWC Board, are hereby transferred to CWC. SEC. 2. Inter-agency Committee on Children in Armed Conflict. The InterAgency Committee on Children in Armed Conflict (IAC-CIAC), constituted by virtue of a Memorandum of Agreement signed on April 2007, is hereby formally established with the following members: Chair: Council for the Welfare of Children Members: Commission on Human Rights (CHR) Department of Health (DOH) Department of Justice (DOJ) Philippine National Police (PNP) Presidential Management Staff (PMS) Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) The CWC may require the participation of the heads of other departments and/or agencies, including government-owned or -controlled corporations (GOCCs), and invite LGUs, and representatives from the private sector and the academe, as it may deem necessary. In line with the enhancement of the CIAC Program Framework, as well as the change in the composition of the IAC-CIAC, the Chair and Members of the IAC-CIAC shall enter into a new Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) to delineate their specific functions and duties within 60 days from the effectivity of this EO. SEC. 3. Functions of the IAC-CIAC.The IAC-CIAC shall advocate for the protection of children and the prevention of the involvement of children in armed conflict, and shall: Ensure that international instruments such as the UN CRC, the Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict and other related human rights treaties are considered in all actions taken; e. Work closely with concerned agencies in coordinating and monitoring the implementation of the enhanced CIAC Program Framework. SEC. 4. Formulation and Integration of Complementary Plans, Programs and Projects.-National government agencies shall formulate and integrate the enhanced CIAC Program Framework in respective annual plans, programs and projects consistent with their mandates. The CWC, with the IAC-CIAC, shall periodically review these plans to ensure policy and program synchronization. LGUS of areas affected by armed conflict may also develop and implement complementary programs to carry out the enhanced CIAC Program Framework, in coordination with CWC. SEC. 5. Establishment of a Monitoring, Reporting and Response System.-A Monitoring, Reporting, and Response System for Grave Child Rights Violations in Situations of Armed Conflict (MRRS GCRVSAC) is hereby created to act as the monitoring arm within the CIAC Program Framework with the primary objective of protecting children in situations of armed conflict by preventing the occurrence of grave child rights violations and ensuring the provision of appropriate and timely response in the event of such violations. The MRRS-GCRVSAC shall likewise generate standard data and information that will serve as the primary source on all matters pertaining to such violations. CWC, as focal agency for the MRRSGCRVSAC, is directed to establish the appropriate coordinative network at the national and local levels. SEC. 6. Functions of the MRRSGCRVSAC.-The MRRS-GCRVSAC shall function as part of the enhanced CIAC Program Framework, specifically: SEC 8. Repeal.-All issuances, orders, rules, and regulations or parts thereof which are inconsistent with the provisions of this EO are hereby revoked and/or modified accordingly. SEC. 9. Separability.-If any provision of this EO is declared invalid unconstitutional, the other provisions unaffected shall remain valid and subsisting. DONE in the City of Manila, this 2nd day Thousand and Thirteen. of August, in the year of Our Lord, Two (Sgd.) BENIGNO SIMEON AQUINO III President of the Philippines a. Gather, validate and monitor reports b. Ensure provision of appropriate and c. Develop and implement an interagency communication plan on the prevention and response to GCRVS; d. Provide reports/updates on the incidence of GCRVS to the CWC Board for policy issuances and program development; and, e. Generate standard data and information that will serve as a primary SEC. 7. Funding.-Funds for the implementation of the enhanced CIAC Program Framework and its components shall be charged against the current appropriations of the participating agencies. Funding for the succeeding years shall be incorporated in their respective regular appropriations. The CWC may receive contributions, grants, and/or other funds from, among others, government agencies and corporations, LGUs, local and foreign donors, development partners, and private sector/institutions, subject to existing laws, rules and regulations. (Sgd.) PAQUITO N. OCHOA, JR. MALACAÑANG MANILA MEMORANDUM ORDER No. 57 DIRECTING THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR IMMEDIATELY TRANSFER OF INFORMAL SETTLER WHEREAS, it is a declared policy of the State under Article II, Section 5 of the 1987 Constitution that "[t]he maintenance of peace and order, the protection of life, liberty, and property, and the promotion of the general welfare are essential for the enjoyment by all the people of the blessings of democracy;" WHEREAS, it is also a declared policy of the State under Article II, Section 9 of the 1987 Constitution "to promote a just and dynamic social order that will ensure the prosperity and independence of the nation and free the people from poverty through policies that provide adequate social services, promote full employment, a rising standard of living, and improved quality of life for all;" WHEREAS, the Social Justice provisions of the Constitution, under Article XIII, Section 9 thereof, mandate that "[t]he State shall, by law, and for the common good, undertake, in cooperation with the private sector, a continuing program of urban land reform and housing which will make available at affordable cost, decent housing and basic services to under-privileged and homeless citizens in urban centers and resettlement areas. It shall also promote adequate employment opportunities to such citizens. In the implementation of such program the State shall respect the rights of small property owners;" WHEREAS, under Article XIII, Section 10 of the 1987 Constitution, further mandates that "urban or rural poor dwellers shall not be evicted nor their dwelling demolished, except in accordance with law and in a just and humane manner. No resettlement of urban or rural dwellers shall be undertaken without adequate consultation with them and the communities where they are to be relocated;" WHEREAS, Section 28, in conjunction with Section 29, of Republic Act (RA) No. 7279 or the Urban Development Housing Act of 1992 (UDHA) provides that the local government units (LGUs), in coordination with the National Housing Authority (NHA), shall implement the relocation and resettlement of persons living in danger areas such as esteros, railroad tracks, garbage dumps, riverbanks, shorelines, waterways, and in other public places; WHEREAS, as emphasized by the President in his State of the Nation Address (SONA) on 22 July 2013, the Administration's thrust is to: (i) provide refuge to our countrymen living in the aforesaid danger or high-risk areas by providing them better housing, with access to public transport: (ii) prioritize their safety in properly reassigning their residential locations after clearing the clogged waterways of our cities; and (iii) guarantee their protection and well-being in this exercise by ensuring proper coordination among the government agencies concerned; WHEREAS, Section 4 of Executive Order (EO) No. 262 (s. 1987), as amended, provides that the Department of Local Government (DLG) shall primarily assist the President in the exercise of general supervision over local governments; and, WHEREAS, Section 5 of RA No. 6975 provides that the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) shall continue the powers and functions of the DLG. NOW, THEREFORE, the Secretary of the Interior and Local Government is hereby directed to immediately spearhead the transfer of informal settler families (ISFs) living in danger and high-risk areas to decent housing sites, as may be applicable, and pave the way for the clearing of clogged waterways, pursuant to the DILG's mandate under RA No. 6975 and EO 262, and the provisions of the UDHA. In order to pursue this directive, the DILG shall coordinate with LGUs, the Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor (PCUP), NHA and other relevant agencies of the Government. This Memorandum Order shall take effect immediately. DONE, in the City of Manila, this 2nd day of August, in the year of our Lord, Two Thousand and Thirteen. By Authority of the President: |