Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Queson City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
‘Second Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 6'787

Introduced by HON. LUIS RAYMUND “LRAY” F. VILLAFUERTE, JR.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

In the 2015 Global Status Report on Disability and Development’, the Philippines is
‘one of the few countries that is attentive to the needs of persons with disabilities
(PWDs) in employment policies and programs, citing Executive Order No. 417
8.2005? on the Economic Independence Program for PWDs. The State’s promotion
of the welfare and development of the PWDs in the country is itself constitutional,
and was the wisdom that inspired the enactment of the Republic Act No. 7277°, or
the “Magna Carta for Disabled Persons’, as amended. The hearing-impaired, in
particular, constitute 17% per half-million population in 19974, a liberal percentage
for a country that has reached 100 million in July of 2014°. The Magna Carta allowed
for the State to adopt policies that gives importance to the fight for equal rights for
PWDs.

Motivated by the same wisdom and empathy that forwarded policies for equal rights
for PWDs, this legislation aims to forward the Filipino sign language as the National
Sign Language of the Filipino people, especially for those who are hard of hearing.
This bill respects both the history of this endangered indigenous sign language® and
its future use in all transactions for the deaf by mandating its use in schools, media
and workplaces. This would raise awareness of this visual language, as well as
enable the deaf to go about life in the country without fear of being misunderstood.

The approval of this bill is earnestly sought.

LUIS RA’ IND AY” F. VILLAFUERTE, JR.

" http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/documents/disability/2016/Q\pbalStat ytonDisabilityandDevelopment.pdf
2 http://www. official gazette. gov.ph/2005/03/22/executive-order-no-41
> http://www.neda.gov.ph/disability-laws/republic-acts/republic-act-7277/
4 http://svww.bhphil.org/research.php

5 https://www-rappler.com/nation/64465-100-millionth-filipino-bom

© http://opinion.inquirer.nev41909/primer-on-filipino-sign-language


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS,
‘Second Regular Session

House BILL.No.6'787

Introduced by HON. LUIS RAYMUND “LRAY” F. VILLAFUERTE, JR.

AN ACT
DECLARING THE FILIPINO SIGN LANGUAGE AS THE NATIONAL SIGN
LANGUAGE OF THE FILIPINO DEAF AND THE OFFICIAL SIGN LANGUAGE OF
GOVERNMENT IN ALL TRANSACTIONS INVOLVING THE DEAF, AND
MANDATING ITS USE IN SCHOOLS, BROADCAST MEDIA, AND WORKPLACES

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

SECTION 1. Title. - This Act shall be known as “The Filipino Sign Language Act’.

SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. - The State shall, in compliance with the United
Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, promote, protect, and
ensure the full and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms of
person with disabilities. Thus, national and local state agencies shall uphold respect
for their inherent dignity, individual autonomy, and independence by guaranteeing
accessibility and eliminating all forms of discrimination in all public interactions and
transactions, thereby ensuring their full and effective participation and inclusion in
society. The State shall also take all appropriate measures to ensure that the Filipino
deaf can exercise the right to expression and opinion. Accordingly, the State
recognizes and promotes the use of sign languages embodying the specific cultural
and linguistic identity of the Filipino deaf.


The State also furthers the vision taken with the Early Years Act (Republic Act No.
10410) and the Enhance Basic Education Act (Republic Act No. 10533), which have
already recognized Filipino Sign Language in the education of deaf learners from
early childhood up to the secondary level.

SECTION 3. Filipino Sign Language as the National Sign Language. - Filipino
Sign Language, hereinafter referred to as FSL, is hereby declared as the national
sign language of the Philippines. The FSL shall be recognized, promoted, and
support as the medium of official communication in all transactions involving the
deaf, and as the language of instruction of deaf education, without prejudice to the
use of other forms of communication depending on individual choice or preference.

SECTION 4. Filipino Sign Language in Education. —

a. Medium of Instruction and Curriculum — The Department of Education
(DepEd), the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), the Technical
Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), and all other national
and local government agencies involved in the education of the deaf, are
tasked to henceforth use, and coordinate with each other on the use of FSL,
as the medium of instruction in deaf education. The FSL shall be taught as a
separate subject in the curriculum for deaf lamers. The reading and writing
of Filipino, as the national language, other Philippine languages, and English
shall also be taught to deaf leamers;

b. Deaf Teachers — To promote the licensing and mobilization of deaf teachers
in formal education as well as alternative leaming systems, the Professional
Regulation Commission (PRC) together with teacher education programs
nationwide are directed to employ altemative assessment procedures as
affirmative action measures which shall consider the conditions, abilities, and
social barriers of the deaf teachers. These procedures shall be language-
appropriate and culture-fair to deaf education graduates;

c. FSL in Teacher Education Programs — In the context of inclusive education
and Universal Design, the learning of FSL shall be a curricular or co-curricular
offering in teacher education programs as deemed appropriate;


d. Training and Evaluation Programs — All national and local goverment
agencies and centers providing education to deaf students are hereby tasked
to undertake regular pre-/in- service training and evaluation of their teachers.
These shall be designed and taught in partnership with the representatives of
the Filipino deaf community.

The University of the Philippines (UP), together with the Komisyon sa Wikang
Filipino (KWF), professional sign linguistics and linguistics researchers, in
collaboration with the CHED and the DepEd, and the Early Childhood Care
and Development (ECCD) Council, shall develop guidelines for the
development of training materials in the education of the deaf for use by all
state universities and colleges (SUCs), as well as their teachers and staff,

SECTION 5. Standards for Filipino Sign Language Interpreting. - The KWF, with
the involvement of the deaf community and other stakeholders, shall establish a
national system of standards, accreditations, and procedures for FSL interpreting,
without prejudice to other forms of communication which respect the right of a deaf
person to accessibility, and to seek, receive impart ideas on an equal basis with
others according to their choice. This shall include policies on the practice of
interpreting as a profession such as compensation raters and benefits, working
conditions, procedures for grievances and others.

SECTION 6. Filipino Sign Language in the Justice System. - The FSL shall be in
the official language of legal interpreting for the deaf in all public hearings,
proceedings, and transactions of the courts, quasi-judicial agencies, and other
tribunals. To ensure effective access to justice for the deaf on an equal basis with
others and to facilitate their effective role as direct and indirect participants in the
legal system, courts, quasi-judicial agencies, and other tribunals are hereby
mandated to ensure the availability of a qualified sign language interpreter in all
proceedings involving the deaf, without prejudice to the right of the deaf to choose
other forms or modes of communication, if they so prefer.

For purposes of this Act, “hearings, proceedings, and transactions” shall include
those in police stations and before the Lupon Tagapamayapa of the Katarungang


Pambarangay, as well as preliminary investigations and other initial stages in the
courts, quasi-judicial bodies, and other tribunals.

The Supreme Court and other concerned agencies shall promote appropriate
training for those working in the administration of justice, including hearing
interpreters, deaf relay interpreters, and other court personnel, police and prison
staff. Support staff shall also be trained in translation from FSL to written English or
Filipino.

The Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Department of Interior and Local
Government (DILG), and the Judiciary, with the involvement of the deaf community
and other stakeholders, are tasked to create a national system of standards
accreditation, and procedures for legal interpreting in FSL.

SECTION 7. Filipino Sign Language in All Workplaces. - The FSL shall be the
official language of the Filipino deaf employed in the civil service and in all
government workplaces. For this purpose, all goverment offices shall take
reasonable measures to encourage the use of FSL among its deaf and hearing
employees, including the conduct of awareness and training seminars on the
rationale and use of FSL

The University of the Philippines, together with the KWF, professional linguistics
organizations and deaf linguistics researchers, shall formulate guidelines for the
development of training materials for the employees of the DOV, the Judiciary, the
Department of Health (DOH), the Department of Social Welfare and Development
(DSWD), the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW), the Council for the Welfare
of Children (CWC), and the Commission on Human Rights (CHR), in the conduct of
the mandates and activities of these concemed offices

SECTION 8. Filipino Sign Language in the Health System. - State hospitals and
all health facilities shall take steps to ensure access of the Filipino deaf to health
services, including the free provision of FSL interpreters and accessible materials
upon request of deaf patients, or individuals who have family members who are deaf.



As part of their corporate social responsibility, private health facilities are encouraged
to provide access to health services to all deaf patients and their family members.

SECTION 8. Filipino Sign Language in All Other Public Transactions, Services,
and Facilities. - All national agencies including government-owned or —controlled
corporations (GOCCs), and local government units (LGUs) are hereby directed to
use FSL as the medium of official communication in all public transactions involving
the deaf. Qualified FSL interpreters and accessible materials shall be provided
whenever necessary or requested during for conferences, meetings, cultural events,
sports competitions, community affairs, and activities conducted by government
agencies and GOCCs.

SECTION 10. Filipino Sign Language in Media. - The FSL shall be the language
of broadcast media interpreting. To guarantee access to information and freedom of
expression of the Filipino deaf, the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP),
and the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) shall, within
one year from the effective date of this Act, require FSL interpreter insets, compliant
with accessibility standards for television, in news and public affairs programs.
‘Subsequently, the MTRCB shall take steps to promote progressive use of FSL in all
other broadcasts and programming, especially in educational television programs
designed for children, in conjunction with the National Council for Children's
Television and the Department of Education.

The KBP and the MTRCB, the deaf community, and other stakeholders, are tasked
to create a national system of standards, procedures and accreditation for broadcast
media interpreting in FSL.

All videos published online including those on social media, shall also conform to
Philippine web accessibility standards.

SECTION 11. Promotion of Filipino Sign Language. - The DepEd, CHED, UP,
KWF, Linguistic Society of the Philippines, and other national agencies and LGUs
shall, in consultation with professional organizations with expertise and experience in
language policy and planning and the deaf community, take appropriate steps to


propagate sign language competency among hearing people, by offering FSL as an
elective subject in the regular or mainstream curriculum, particularly of State
Universities and Colleges.

In coordination with the KWF, SUCs, led by the University of the Philippines, are
directed to undertake continuing research for the development, propagation, and
preservation of FSL and its cultural history.

SECTION 12. Instructional Materials for Schools and Child Development
Centers. - The DepEd Instructional Materials and Council Secretariat shall, in
coordination with the Bureau of Leaming Resources and Bureau of Leaming
Delivery, as well as the ECCD Council, develop guidelines for the selection,
production, procurement, and distribution of print and video materials in FSL to all
public schools, day care centers, and national child development centers. Seventy-
five percent of all procurement contracts shall be reserved for deaf people's
organizations, including regional or provincial enterprises and cooperatives run by
the deaf and recognized by the LGUs.

SECTION 13. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The KW, in coordination
with the Secretary of Education, the Chairperson of the CHED, the Director General
of the TESDA, the Chairperson of the PRC, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme
Court, the Secretary of Justice, and the heads of other relevant agencies, and in
consultation with the representatives of the deaf community, teachers with
knowledge and experience with the use of FSL in deaf education, the academe,
interpreters, and other persons concemed, shall promulgate the necessary rules and
regulations for the effective implementation of this Act within one hundred eighty
(180) days after its effective date, These rules and regulations shall be published in
accessible formats in the respective websites of the concemed agencies and
through other means necessary.

SECTION 14. Monitoring of the Implementation of this Act. - With
representatives of the deaf community, an Inter-Agency Committee shall be created
including the CHR, the CWC, the PCW, individuals and institutions with knowledge
and experience on FSL and its use, to make an annual assessment of the


implementation of this Act. The report of this Inter-Agency Committee shall be
transmitted annually of the House Committee on Social Services and Senate
Committee on Social Justice, Welfare and Development and shall be published in
accessible formats in their respective websites and through other means necessary.

SECTION 15. Appropriations. - The initial funding of this Act shall be taken from
the current year's appropriations of the concerned agencies. Thereafter, the amount
necessary for its continued implementation shall be included in the annual General
Appropriations Act. Relevant and allowable expenditures related to education may
also be charged to the ECCDC, the LGU Special Education Fund, or other relevant
fund.

SECTION 16. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act is held invalid or
unconstitutional, the same shall not affect the validity and effectivity of the other
provisions hereof.

SECTION 17. Repealing Clause. — All laws, decrees, executive orders and rules
and regulations contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby

repealed or modified accordingly.

SECTION 18. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after
its publication in the Official Gazette or in two (2) newspapers of general circulation

Approved,