Tour Leyte

Torture now a crime as PGMA signs RA 9745

Tacloban City – President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s signing into law on November 10, the anti-torture bill, is a manifestation of her administration’s resolve to uphold human rights.

Republic Act 9745 or the Anti-torture Law criminalizes “torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment.”

The law classifies acts of torture as acts constituting physical torture such as systematic beating, food deprivation, electric shock, cigarette burning and rape among others.

The law defines mental and psychological torture as acts such as blindfolding, prolonged interrogation, maltreating a member or members of a person’s family and denial of sleep, among others.

“Torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment is a criminal act and shall apply to all circumstances,” the Law provides.

The law also provides that a state of war or a threat of war, internal political instability, or any other public emergency, or a document or any determination comprising an order of battle, should not and could not be invoked as a justification for torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment.

“Life imprisonment shall be meted on any person guilty of the following acts: torture resulting in the death of any person; torture resulting in mutilation; torture with rape and other forms of sexual abuse, when the victim has become insane, impotent, blind or maimed for life; and torture committed against children,” the Law further stated.

The Philippines is a signatory to the Convention Against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

The United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment is an international human rights instrument, under the review of the United Nations, that aims to prevent torture around the world.

The Convention requires states to take effective measures to prevent torture within their borders, and forbids states to return people to their home country if there is reason to believe they will be tortured.

The text of the Convention was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 10 December 1984 and, following ratification by the 20th state party, it came into force on 26 June 1987. The date, 26 June is now recognized as the International Day in Support of Torture Victims, in honor of the Convention. The Philippines signed it in 1986.

As of December 2008, about 146 nations are parties to the treaty, and another ten countries have signed but not ratified it. (PIA

• PIA: “Men still make the laws of the world”
• DOH prepares for 2nd wave of H1N1 virus
• Villar focuses on effects of climate change on food, agriculture
• Liga Ng Mga Barangay convention to be held in Cebu City
• FBI team to arrive next week to conduct probe on cyber sex