A NATIVE of Besao, Mountain Province was recently appointed as Assistant Secretary of the Department of Justice by President Rodrigo Duterte.
Human rights lawyer Cheryl Daytec-Yangot was appointed this week who is also known as an activist, poet and an associate professor in Saint Louis University.
As a human rights lawyer, Daytec-Yangot devoted most of her time working for justice and the peace process especially the oppressed indigenous peoples.
Daytec-Yangot has also served to protect and help environmentalists, not only in Baguio but in the region.
As a poet, her pieces have been published in poetry journals and books here and abroad.
Her works include ‘Cry of the Innocent’, ‘Footnote to the Gaza Assaults’, ‘The Children of Gaza’, ‘Lying in Pools of Their Own Blood’ (Footnote to the Gaza Bombings II), ‘Death for Liberty’, and others.
Daytec – Yangot is a Fulbright and Hubert H. Humphrey fellow in the University of Minnesota Law School, U.S.A. and had her Masters of Law at the Central European University. She is also a fellow of the Open Society Justice Initiative.
In a Facebook post the human rights lawyer said “thanks a lot for the best wishes. Please always remind me of our ancestor’s virtues so I will perform according to them in service to the people.”
Known as “Chyt” to people close to her heart, she is married to Baguio City Councilor Leandro Yangot who is also an advocate to indigenous peoples and human rights and a guardian of the environment.
Baguio Mayor Domogan has expressed his congratulations to Daytec-Yangot after her appointment in the DOJ. (Elamae Membrere)