REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

House Bill No. 8899

Introduced by MAGDALO Party-List Representative
HON. GARY C. ALEJANO

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The archipelagic nature of the Philippines and its strategic maritime location in the South
China Sea shows great promise as to our country’s underwater cultural heritage. The discovery of
various watercrafis, both indigenous and foreign: ranging from our ancestors’ balangay, a galleon
dating back from the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade, or a remnant of the Second World War is
evidence that there are just as much Filipino history to be learned under the vast Philippine seas that
needs managing and protecting.

However, the management and protection of this cultural heritage is far from perfect.
Inadequate financial support from the government, weak legislation and enforcement and lack of
qualified personnel are cited as some of the reasons. This is coupled with the ever active threat of
pillage and destruction from treasure hunters, illegal fishing methods and the dive tourism industry.

It is timely then that another legislation be passed to recognize the State’s responsibility for
managing a broad range of living and non-living resources in State waters and submerged lands,
including abandoned shipwrecks, which have been deserted and to which the owner has relinquished
rights with no retention.

This proposed measure seeks to enforce through legislation the legal property rights of the
Philippines to any abandoned shipwreck in or on the public lands of the country, its submerged lands,
and territorial waters and more importantly, to guarantee the management, conservation, and
development of such properties into underwater parks of great cultural and historical importance.

In view of the foregoing, approval of this measure is earnestly sought.

Gary & Alejano


REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

House Bill No. 6899

Introduced by MAGDALO Party-List Representative
HON. GARY C. ALEJANO

AN ACT
‘TO ESTABLISH THE TITLE OF THE STATE IN CERTAIN ABANDONED SHIPWRECKS
AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress
assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. — This Act can be cited as the “Abandoned Shipwreck Act.”

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. — \n order to—
a) clarify that national waters and shipwrecks offer recreational and educational
opportunities to sport divers and other interested groups, as well as irreplaceable resources
for tourism, biological sanctuaries, and historical research; and

) provide that reasonable access by the public to such abandoned shipwrecks be permitted
by the province holding such shipwrecks pursuant to section 5 of this Act;

it is hereby declared the policy of the State that government carry out their responsibilities under
this Act to develop appropriate and consistent policies so as to—

a) protect natural resources and habitat areas;
) guarantee recreational exploration of shipwreck sites: and

©) allow for appropriate public and private sector recovery of shipwrecks consistent with
the protection of historical values and environmental integrity of the shipwrecks and sites.

SEC. 3. Definition of Terms. —For the purposes of this Act:


a) Embedded means firmly affixed in the submerged lands or in coralline formations such
that the use of tools of excavation is required in order to move the bottom sediments to
gain access to the shipwreck, its cargo, and any part thereof;

) National Register means the Philippine Registry of Cultural Property
c) Shipwreck means a vessel or wreck, its cargo, and other contents;
d) State means the entire territory of the Philippine government; and

¢) Submerged lands means soil lying beneath the territorial waters or on the oceanside
of the tidelands of the Philippines.

SEC. 4. Preparation of Guidelines. —

a) In order to encourage the development of underwater parks and the administrative
cooperation necessary for the comprehensive management of underwater resources related to
historic shipwrecks, the Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources shall within 120 days
after the approval of this Act, prepare and publish guidelines in the Office of the National
Administrative Register which shall seek to:

1) maximize the enhancement of natural resources;

2) foster a partnership among sport divers, fishermen, archeologists, salvors and
other interests to manage shipwreck resources of the Philippines;

3) facilitate access and utilization by recreational interests;

4) recognize the interests of individuals and groups engaged in shipwreck
discovery and salvage.

b) Such guidelines shall be developed after consultation with appropriate public and
Private sector interests (including the Secretary of Trade and Industry, National Historical
Commission of the Philippines, the National Museum, sport divers, professional dive operators,
salvors, archeologists, historic preservationists, and fishermen).

) Such guidelines shall be available to assist provinces and the appropriate government

agencies in developing legislation and regulations to carry out their responsibilities under this
Act.


SEC. 5. Rights of Ownership. —
a) The Philippine government asserts title to any abandoned shipwreck that is—
1) embedded in submerged lands of the State;

2) embedded in coralline formations protected by the State on submerged lands of
the State

3) on submerged lands of the State and is included in or determined eligible for
inclusion in the National Register.

b) The public shall be given adequate notice of the location of any shipwreck to which
title is asserted under this section. The Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources, after
consultation with the appropriate government agencies, shall make a written determination that
an abandoned shipwreck meets the criteria for eligibility for inclusion in the National Register
under subsection (a3) of this section.

) Any abandoned shipwreck in or on the public lands of the Philippines is the property
of the Philippine Government.

SEC. 6. Relationship to Other Laws. —

a) The law of salvage and the law of finds shall not apply to abandoned shipwrecks to
which section 6 of this Act applies.

b) This Act shall not change the laws of the Philippines relating to shipwrecks, other than
those to which this Act applies.

) This Act shall not affect any legal proceeding brought prior to the enactment of this
Act.

SEC. 7. Separability Clause. — If any provision, section or part of this Act shall be declared

unconstitutional or invalid, such judgment shall not affect, invalidate or impair any other provisions,
sections or parts thereof.

SEC. 8. Effectivity. — This Act shall take effect immediately after approval.

Approved,