New Philippine Antiterrorism Law

The Philippines’ new terrorism law (The Human Security Act of 2007) looks good on its face; the devil is in the details. While it purportedly limits police custody to 3 days and prohibits both rendition and the admissibility of testimony obtained through torture, exceptions and broad language make the law yet another enabler of human rights abuse. As Human Rights Watch points out, the overly broad definition of terrorism combined with a mandatory minimum sentence of 40 years imprisonment without parole open the door to overly harsh punishment of minor violations. In addition, what Article 18 gives by limiting police custody to 3 days is taken away by Article 19, which allows for extending that period indefinitely in cases of “actual or imminent terrorist attack” if the police obtain written approval from either a court a “municipal, city, provincial or regional official.” According to HRW, not only is mistreatment in detention a serious problem in the Philippines, but authorities there also are known to hold suspects for long periods without arraignment or trial. The new law thus may legitimate these practices, despite the one positive aspect of the new law: its ban on using torture, threats, or coercion against detainees, which provides that evidence obtained through such practices is inadmissible in judicial and administrative proceedings. The new law also bans rendition, but the ban is subject to exceptions that allow for handing over a detainee without formal extradition proceedings if his/her testimony is needed in a terrorism-related trial or police investigation. The law authorizes the practice of obtaining diplomatic assurances that “rendees” will not be tortured. Following the lead of the UK, US and Canada, many countries have embraced this practice, which has been denounced by the UN Special Rapporteur on torture as offering inadequate protection against torture. Philippine activists and former Vice President Teofisto Guingona have asked the Supreme Court to strike down the new law, fearing it will turn a lively democracy into a police state and ruin chances of making peace with Communist rebels.