Republic of the Philippines 
) 
FOURTEENTH CONGRESS 
SENATE 
s. No. 
Prepared jointly by the Committees on Justice and Human Rights and Finance 
with Senators Ejercito-Estrada, Biazon, Defensor-Santiago and Escudero and 
Enrile as authors thereof 
AN ACT 
PENALIZING 
TORTURE AND OTHER 
CRUEL, 
INHUMAN AND 
DEGRADING 
TREATMENT 
OR 
PUNISHMENT, 
PRESCRIBING 
PENALTIES THEREFOR AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress 
assembled: 
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SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the "Anti-Torture Act 
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of2007" 
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State: 
SEC. 2. 
Statement of Policy. - It is hereby declared the policy of the 
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(a) To ensure that the rights of all persons, including suspects, 
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1 detainees and prisoners are respected at all times; and that no person placed 
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under investigation or held in custody of any person in authority shall be 
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subjected to physical, psychological, mental or pharmacological harm, force, 
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violence, threat or intimidation or any act that impairs his/her free will or in any 
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manner demeans or degrades human dignity; and 


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(b) To fully adhere to the principles and standards on the absolute 
condemnation and prohibition of torture set by the 1987 Philippine Constitution 
and various international instruments, such as, but not limited to, the 
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the Convention on 
the Rights of the Child (CRC), the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of 
Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the Convention Against Torture 
and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT), to 
which the Philippines is a State party. 
SEC. 3. 
Torture, When Committed. - "Torture" shall be deemed 
'committed when an act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical, 
psychological, mental or pharmacological, is intentionally inflicted on a person 
for such purposes as: obtaining from him/her or a third person information or a 
confession; punishing him/her for an act he/she or a third person has committed 
or is suspected of having committed; intimidating or coercing him/her or a third 
person; or for any reason based on discrimination of any kind. And that such 
pain or suffering is inflicted by or is made at the instigation of or with the 
consent or acquiescence of a public official or other person acting in an official 
capacity. 
It does not include pain or suffering arising only from inherent or 
incidental to lawful sanctions. 
For purposes of this Act, torture shall include, but not be limited to, 
the following: 
(a) 
Physical torture, which shall be understood as referring to 
such cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment which causes pain, exhaustion, 
disability or dysfunction of one or more parts of a person's body, such as: 


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1. 
Systematic beating, headbanging, punching, kicking, 
striking with truncheons, rifle butts, and jumping on the stomach; 
2. 
Food deprivation or forcible feeding with spoiled 
food or drink, animal or human excreta, wine or such other substance not 
normally taken; 
3. 
Electric shocks; 
4. 
Cigarette burning, burning by electrically heated 
rods, hot oil, acid; rubbing of pepper or other chemical substances on mucous 
membranes, or acids or spices or other similar or harmful substances, directly on 
the wounds; 
5. 
Water treatment or the submersion of the head in 
water or water polluted with excrement, urine, vomit and/or blood until, or 
almost at, the brink of suffocation; 
6. 
, Being tied up, hanged or forced to assume fixed and 
stressful bodily positions; 
7. 
Rape, including the insertion of foreign objects into 
the sex organ or rectum, or electrocution of the genitals, nipple, breast or rectum; 
8. 
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Other forms of sexual abuse; 
Mutilation, like the amputation of the essential parts 
of the body such as the genitalia, ears, tongue, etc.; 
10. 
Dental torture or the forced extraction of the teeth; 
11. 
Harmful exposure to elements such as extreme heat 
and cold as well as animals or insects; 
12. 
Suffocation or the use of plastic bags or other 
materials placed over the head almost or up to the point of asphyxiation; or 
13. 
Other analogous or similar forms of aggravated and 
deliberate cruel, inhuman or degrading physical treatment or punishment; 


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(b) 
Mentaljpsychological torture, which shall be understood as 
referring to such cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment calculated to affect or 
confuse a person's mind and/or undermine his/her dignity and morale, such as: 
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' Blindfolding; 
2. 
Threatening to commit or committing criminal or 
other wrongful acts; 
3. 
Confinement in solitary cells; 
4. 
Prolonged interrogation so as to deny normal length 
of sleep and/or rest; 
5. 
Causing unscheduled or arbitrary transfers from one 
place to another so as to create a reasonable belief of summary execution; 
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Causing torture session/s to be witnessed by any 
other person 
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Subjecting a person to shame such as stripping 
Denial of sleep and/or rest; 
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9. 
Illegal detention; or 
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10. 
Other analogous or similar forms of deliberate and 
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aggravated cruel, inhuman or degrading mental treatment or punishment. 
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(c) 
Pharmacological Torture which shall be understood as 
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referring to such cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment through the 
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administration of drugs or similar substances to induce from a person confession 
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and/or reduce his/her mental competency, such as; 
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him/her naked, parading him/her in public places, shaving his/her heads or 
putting marks or objects on his/her bodies against his/her will; 
1. 
The use of drugs or other substances to induce pain, 
discomfort, anxiety, suffering, anguish, distress, insanity, psychosis or certain 
symptoms of any disease; or 


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2. 
Other analogous or similar forms of deliberate and 
aggravated cruel, inhuman or degrading pharmacological treatment or 
punishment. 
SEC. 4. 
Freedom from Torture, an Absolute Right. - Torture as a 
criminal act applies to a11 circumstances. A state of war or a threat of war, 
internal political instability, or any other public emergency, or that the person is 
a combatant, political ene'my, or a fugitive, shall not and can never be invoked as 
a justification for torture. 
SEC. 5. 
Prohibited Detention. - Secret detention places, solitary 
confinement, incommunicado or other similar forms of detention, where torture 
may be carried on with impunity, are hereby prohibited. 
In which case, the Philippine National Police (PNP), the 
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and other law enforcement agencies 
, concerned shall make an updated list of all detention centers and facilities under 
their respective jurisdictions with the corresponding data on the prisoners or 
detainees incarcerated or detained therein such as, among other, names, date of 
arrest and incarceration, and the crime or offense committed. This list shall be 
made available to the public at all times. 
SEC. 6. 
Applicability of 
the Exclusionnry Rule; Exception. - Any 
confession, .admission or statement obtained as a result of torture shall be 
inadmissible in evidence in any proceedings, except if the same is used as 
evidence against a person or persons accused of committing torture. 


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'Commission on Human Rights (CHR), the PNP, the AFP and the National 
Bureau of Investigation (NBI). A prompt investigation shall mean a maximum 
period of thirty (30) days from the time a complaint for torture is filed within 
which an investigation report and/or resolution shall be completed and made 
available. 
2. 
To have sufficient government protection against all forms 
of harassment, threat and/or intimidation as a consequence of the filing of said 
complaint or the presentation of evidence therefor. In which case, the State 
through its appropriate agencies shall afford security in order to ensure his/her 
safety and a11 other persons involved in the investigation and prosecution such 
as, but not limited to, his/her lawyer, witnesses and relatives. 
Any person committing such acts of harassment, threat, and/or 
intimidation shall be criminally liable as an accessory to the crime of torture 
subject of the complaint without prejudice to any other crime or offense 
committed by virtue of said acts. 
3. 
To be accorded sufficient latitude, consideration and 
protection in the manner by which he/she testifies and presents evidence in any 
fora so as to ensure his/her psychological, mental and social well-being and 
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torture: 
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SEC. 7. 
Institutional Protection of Torture Victims. - A victim of torture 
shall have the following rights in the institution of a criminal complaint for 
1. 
To have a prompt and an impartial investigation by the 
agencies of government concerned such as the Department of Justice (DOJ), the 
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avoid further trauma.. 
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SEC. 8. 
Assistance in Filing a Complaint. - A party who suffered 
torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment, or 


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any interested party on their behalf, may seek legal assistance in the proper 
handling and filing of the complaint from any of the government agencies 
concerned specifically the DOJ, CHR, the PNP, the AFP, the NBI, the Barangay 
Human Rights Action Center nearest them, and human rights non-government 
organizations duly recognized by the government. 
SEC. 9. 
Right to Physical, Medical and Psychological Examinafion. - 
Every person arrested, detained or under custodial investigation shall have the 
right to be informed of his/her right to demand physical, pharmacological and 
psychological examinations and/ or medical treatment by an independent and 
competent doctor or specialist or expert of his/her own choice before and after 
arrest, detention or investigation, which shall be conducted outside the influence 
of the police or security forces. If such person cannot afford the services of 
his/her own doctor or specialist or expert, he/slie shall be provided by the State 
with a competent and independent doctor. If the person arrested is a female, she 
sliall be provided with a female doctor. 
The medical report or any report pertinent for the above 
examinations and/or treatment, if the person so arrested, detained or 
investigated upon avaiIed of said right, shall include in detail the patient's 
medical history and the findings of the physician concerned with his/her 
signature affixed, and shall be attached to the report on such arrest, detention or 
investigation. Otherwise, said report shall be deemed null and void and of no 
legal effect. 
Following applicable protocol agreed upon by agencies, medical 
reports or any report equivalent thereto shall, among others, include the 
following: 
(1) 
' The name, age and address of the patient or victim; 


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(2) 
The name and address of the nearest kin of the 
patient or victim; 
(3) The name and address of the person who brought the 
patient or victim for physical, pharmacological and psychological examination, 
and/or medical treatment 
(4) 
The nature and probable cause of the patient or 
victim's injury, pain and disease and/or trauma; 
(5) 
disease and/ or trauma was/were sustained; 
(6) 
The approximate time and date when the injury, pain, 
The place where the injury, pain, disease and/or 
trauma was/were sustained; 
(7) 
(8) 
The time, date and nature of treatment necessary; and 
' The diagnosis, the prognosis and/or disposition of 
the patient or victim. 
A person can waive his/her right under this section only in writing 
and with the assistance of an independent and competent counsel, preferably of 
his/her own choice. 
SEC. 10. 
w h o  are Criminally Liable. - Any person who actually 
participated in the infliction of torture or who is present during the commission 
! of said act shall be liable as principal. 
Any superior military, police or law enforcement officer or senior 
government official who issued an order to any lower ranking personnel to 
commit torture for whatever purpose shall be held equally liable as principals. 
Any order to commit torture from any superior officer, superior in the office or 
public authority shall be illegal and can never be invoked as a justification for the 
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commission thereof. 


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The immediate commanding officer of the unit concerned of the 
AFP or the immediate senior public official of the PNP and other law 
enforcement agencies shall be held liable as accessory to the crime of torture for 
any act or omission, or negligence committed by him/her that shall have led, 
assisted or abetted the commission of torture by hisjher subordinates. 
SEC. 11. 
Penalties. - (a) 
The penalty of reclusion pevpetua shall be 
imposed if as a consequence of torture or in the commission thereof the victim: is 
a woman or a minor; died; was raped or sexually abused; or became insane, 
'imbecile or impotent. 
(b) 
The penalty of reclusion temporal in its medium and 
maximum periods shall be imposed, if as a consequence of torture or in the 
commission thereof, the victim lost the use of speech, the power to hear or to 
smell, an eye, a hand, a foot, an arm or a leg, or the use of any such member, or 
his/her capacity for the work in which he/she was theretofore habitually 
engaged permanently. 
(c) 
The penalty of prision mayor in its maximum period to 
reclusion temporal in its minimum period, if as a consequence of torture or in the 
conduct or commission thereof the victim was deformed, or lost any other part of 
his/her body or the use thereof or his/her capacity for the work in which he/she 
was theretofore habitually engaged for a period of more than ninety (90) days; 
(d) 
The penalty of prision mayor in its minimum and medium 
periods if as a consequence of torture or in the commission thereof the victim 
became ill or incapacitated for the work in which he/she was therefore 
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habitually engaged for a period of more than thirty (30) days; and 
(e) 
The penalty of prision correccional in its maximum period to 
prision mayor in its minimum period, if as a consequence of torture or in the 


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commission thereof the victim became ill or incapacitated for to work for a 
period of thirty (30) days or less. 
SEC.12. 
Torture as a Separate and Independent Crime. - Torture as a 
crime shall not absorb or shall not be absorbed by any other crime or felony 
committed as a consequence, or as a means in the conduct or commission 
thereof. In which case, torture shall be treated as a separate and independent 
criminal act whose penalties shall be imposable without prejudice to any other 
criminal liability provided for by law. 
SEC.13. 
Applicability of Refouler. - No person shall be expelled, 
returned or extradited to another State where there are substantial grounds to 
believe that such person shall be in danger of being subjected to torture. For the 
purposes of determining whether such grounds exist, the Secretary of the 
Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Secretary of the DOJ, in 
coordination with the Chairperson of the CHR, shall take into account all 
relevant considerations including, where applicable and not limited to, the 
existence in the requesting State of a consistent pattern of gross, flagrant or mass 
violations of human rights. 
SEC. 14. 
Compensation to Victims of Torture. - Any person who has 
suffered torture shall have the right to claim for compensation as provided for 
under Republic Act No. 7309: Provided, That in no case shall compensation be any 
lower than Ten Thousand Pesos (P 10,000.00). Victims of torture shall also have 
the right to claim for compensation from such other financial relief programs that 
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may be made available to him/her under existing law and rules and regulations 


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SEC. 15. 
Formulation of a Rehabilitation Program. - Within one year 
from the effectivity of this Act, the Department of Social Welfare and 
Development (DSWD), DOJ and the Department of Health (DOH) and such 
other concerned government agencies, shall formulate a comprehensive 
rehabilitation program for victims of torture and their families. The DSWD, the 
DOJ and the DOH shall also call on human rights non-government organizations 
" duly recognized by the government to actively participate in the formulation of 
such program that shall provide for the physical, mental, social, psychological 
and spiritual healing and development of victims of torture and their families. 
SEC.16. 
Orgunizutionul Responsibility. - The AFP, the PNP, the NBI 
and other law enforcement and investigative agencies are hereby given 
organizational responsibility and obligation in overseeing the strict and effective 
implementation of this Act. As such, they shall create a division or a unit 
specifically designed for the said purpose. 
SEC. 17. 
Education and Information Campaign. - The CHR, the DOJ, the 
Department of National Defense (DND) and such other concerned organizations 
in both the public and private sectors shall ensure appropriate education and 
information campaigns on torture. 
Torture as a crime shall be included in the training program of all 
law enforcement agencies, the military, medical personnel and public officials. 
The Department of Education (DepEd) and the Commission on Higher 
Education (CHED) shall also ensure the integration of human rights education in 
the formal curricula of all primary, secondary and tertiary level in all academic 
institutions nationwide. 
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SEC. 18. 
Suppletory Applications. - The provisions of the Revised Penal 
Code in so far they are applicable shall be suppletory to this Act. 
SEC. 19. 
Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The DOJ and the CHR, 
with the active participation of human rights non-governmental organizations, 
shall promulgate the rules and regulations for the effective implementation of 
this Act. They shall also ensure the full dissemination of such rules and 
regulations to all officers and members of various law enforcement agencies. 
SEC. 20. 
Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act is declared 
invalid or unconstitutional the other provisions not affected thereby shall 
continue to be in full force and effect. 
SEC.21. 
Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, executive orders or 
I rules and regulations contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act 
are hereby repealed or modified accordingly. 
SEC. 22. 
Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after 
its publication in at least two newspapers of general circulation. 
Approved 
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