Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bill No. 1239

Introduced by Representative MICAELA S. VIOLAGO

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The proliferation of high profile and heinous crimes has ignited the call for the
mandatory imposition of the death penalty in capital offenses under the Revised
Penal Code and other penal laws.

Similarly, the cases of qualified trafficking are subject to such call. The public
outcry resonates throughout the country.

For it seems the abolition of the supreme penalty has not deterred the
commission of the crime. On the contrary, its non-imposition has emboldened the
criminals to pursue their crimes with impunity. As reported recently in SunStar Cebu
on the 31% of January 2017, a 23-year-old woman was indicted by the Office of the
Cebu City Prosecutor for violating Republic Act No. 9208, or the Anti-Trafficking in
Persons Act of 2003. She allegedly acted as a pimp to two women, aged 14 to 21 to
a foreigner, in exchange for money on the 11" of January 2017.

The 2018 Global Slavery Index report shows a significant rise in the number
of victims of human trafficking in the Philippines. Most notable was the incident of 13
minors, including a two-month-old baby, who were trafficked by their own relatives
and were rescued in March of 2017 by operatives of the National Bureau of
Investigation (NBI) with the help of personnel from the U.S. Homeland Security
Investigators and Immigration and the Customs Enforcement team. Specifically, the
minors were used to promote child pornography.

Their case is just one of the more than 700,000 victims of human trafficking
based on the report. This puts the Philippines in the 12" rank among countries with
the highest incidence of modem-day slavery in the entire Asia Pacific

Considering that the Constitution grants Congress the flexibility to impose the
death penalty under certain circumstances and based on the current wisdom of the
times, it is best to once again restore the penalty of death for those convicted of


qualified trafficking under Section 6 of Republic Act No. 9208. This is to put back into
the consciousness of those involved in the qualified trafficking trade that the ultimate
punishment of death awaits them should they continue with their nefarious acts.

Accordingly, approval of this proposed measure, is strongly recommended.

ICAELA S. vigfaco


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bill No._ 2238

Introduced by Representative MICAELA S. VIOLAGO

“AN ACT AMENDING SUBSECTION (C) OF SECTION 10 OF REPUBLIC ACT NO.
9208, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE ‘ANTI-TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS ACT OF
2003’”

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

SECTION 4. Section 10 (C) of Republic Act No. 9208, otherwise known as
the “Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003’ is hereby amended to read, as follows:

“Section 10. Penalties and Sanctions. - The following penalties
and sanctions are hereby established for the offenses
enumerated in this Act:

XxX

(c) Any person found guilty of qualified trafficking under Section
6 shall suffer the penalty of [life imprisonment] DEATH and a
fine of not less than Two million pesos (P2,000,000.00) but not
more than Five million pesos (P5,000, 000.00);

XxX”

Section 2, Separability Clause. Should any provisions of this Act be found
unconstitutional by a court of law, such provisions shall be severed from the
remainder of the Act, and such action shall not affect the enforceability of the
remaining provisions of this Act.

Section 3. Repealing Clause. Alll laws presidential decrees, executive orders
and rules and regulations inconsistent with the provisions ‘of this Act are hereby
repealed or modified accordingly.


Section 4. Effectivity Clause. This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after
its complete publication either in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general
circulation in the Philippines.

Approved,