Bacolod approves human rights action centers in all barangays

BACOLOD CITY – The Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) here approved on March 3, 2026, an ordinance establishing human rights protection mechanisms at the barangay level across the city.

Authored by City Councilor Wilson Gamboa Jr., the Bacolod City Human Rights Action Center Ordinance (BCHRAC Ordinance) will station a human rights desk at the City’s Social Services and Development (DSSD) and create a Barangay Human Rights Action Center (BHRAC) in all barangays of Bacolod City to receive, assist, and respond to human rights complaints and issues endorsed by the city’s 61 Barangay Human Rights Action Officers (BHRAOs).

Each BHRAC will be headed by a Barangay Human Rights Action Officer, to be appointed by the Barangay Chairman with the concurrence of the majority of the Sangguniang Barangay members through a resolution passed for the purpose.

The BHRAC, through the BHRAO, will also organize an advisory group composed of representatives from the church, schools, sectoral organizations, private organizations, non-government organizations, and local media within the barangay.

The ordinance aims to ensure accountability of local and national authorities in the protection, promotion, and full realization of all human rights.

It also seeks to empower people at the grassroots level in protecting and promoting human rights, bring the services of the Commission on Human Rights closer to the people, and instill greater public awareness of human rights.

The measure further aims to widen the democratic space for participation of civil society organizations and people’s organizations in local governance and develop policies and legislation that would address issues on human rights, rule of law, and access to justice.

It also seeks to guarantee that individuals fully enjoy their rights without arbitrary interference from the government, as provided by Section 1, Article III of the Constitution, through access to justice at the local level.

The ordinance requires all barangays in the city to allocate from their annual barangay budget a sufficient amount, to be determined by the Barangay Chairman and the Sangguniang Barangay, for the exclusive use and operation of the BHRACs, including reasonable salaries or allowances for the BHRAOs, subject to the required accounting and auditing procedures.

The measure is expected to institutionalize a city-wide human rights mechanism aimed at making protection, awareness, and access to justice more responsive and accessible to every Bacolodnon.

The ordinance comes at a time when the Commission on Human Rights has been actively expanding partnerships to broaden access to legal assistance, including its recent collaboration with the Supreme Court on the Unified Legal Aid Service (ULAS) portal launched on March 3, 2026.

Bacolod’s barangay-level approach mirrors the CHR’s broader push to decentralize human rights services and bring them closer to communities, particularly in geographically isolated and underserved areas.