Arroyo ratifies treaty against torture

Manila: President Gloria Arroyo has ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture (OPCAT), an international human rights treaty, the president's office said yesterday.

In a message sent to the Philippine Human Rights Commission (PHRC), United Nations Special Rapporteur Philip Alston expressed the hope that the Senate would "go along with" Arroyo's April 22 decision.

OPCAT was ratified ten days after the country stood up to scrutiny during a universal periodic review at the United Nations, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said in a statement.