FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
Second Regular Session 
S E N A T E  
Senate Bill No. 2 60 5 
Introduced by Senator Manny Villar 
Article 111 of the 1987 Constitution provides the Bill of Rights of every 
Filipino citizen. 
Our right to life, liberty, property and security among other 
fundamental rights enumerated therein, are the foundations of a truly democratic 
society and it is the policy of the State to protect these rights. It is also the duty 
of the State to commit to the promotion, protection and fulfillment of existing 
human rights laws and those that are embodied under the International 
Humanitarian Law (IHL). In the pursuance of this State policy and to effect our 
commitment on human rights laws and foremost, to protect the rights of persons 
who were internally displaced due to natural or human-made disasters, this bill is 
thus, being proposed. 
The Citizens Disaster Response Center or CDRC in a study it conducted 
in 2007 reveals that five (5) of the country's most frequently occurred natural and 
man-made disasters were fire, armed conflict, flood, tropical cyclone and storm 
surges. It reported that in 2007 alone, more than one (1) million families or 
around 4.5 million persons were affected by these disasters. More than 200,000 
of these individuals most particularly those in the rural areas have been 
evacuated or displaced from their habitual homes due to armed conflict 
Although armed aggression is second only in rank in terms of frequent 
occurrence, it is very alarming though that the number of persons it affected 
increased by eighty-six percent (86%) or by more than 95,000 in 2007 compared 
to the previous year. The National Disaster Coordinating Council or NDCC has 
reported that as of 02 September 2008, the complex emergency in Mindanao 
brought about by armed confrontation between the Philippine armed forces and 
the MlLF and other rebel groups, particularly in Regions X, XI1 and the ARMM 
has affected or displaced 89,243 families or 423,772 persons. This proposed bill 
is conceived to address this decades old problem. 
The bill aims to promote and protect the rights of internally displaced 
persons (IDPs) brought about by armed conflict, violations of human rights and 
other natural or man-made disasters. It shall likewise, define and criminalize acts 
of arbitrary internal displacement committed by any person or group of persons 
against any civilian. 
Internally displaced families and communities shall be 
provided with immediate relief and humanitarian assistance by the military and 
law enforcement agencies who are conducting the operations, the DSWD, DOH 
and the local government units concerned. Assistance will include compensation 
to families or persons who are victims of internal displacement. 


The Commission on Human Rights (CHR), in addition to its constitutional 
mandate shall be designated as the institutional focal point for the internally 
displaced. It will be tasked to monitor as well as investigate human rights 
violations committed against internally displaced persons and shall likewise be 
the government's advisor on sound policies and legislation necessary to 
effectively implement this proposed act. It will also be responsible for the drafting 
and promulgation of this act's implementing rules and regulations (IRR). 
A Joint Congressional Oversight Committee shall be created and will be 
represented by Members of the Senate and the House of Representatives 
particularly the Chairperson of their respective Committee on Human Rights. It 
shall have the power to review, revise, amend and approve the IRR promulgated 
by the CHR. It shall likewise, have the power to inquire into, summon and 
investigate the legality and factual justifications of the Orders of Battle created by 
the military, police or any law enforcement agency. 
Based on the foregoing, the immediate enactment of this proposed 
measure is earnestly sought. 
MANNY V LLAR 
t 


FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
Second Regular Session 
SENATE 
f 
S .  N o . Z a S  
Introduced by Senator Manny Villar 
AN ACT 
IMPROVING PHILIPPINE COMMITMENT TO HUMAN RIGHTS PROMOTION 
AND PROTECTION BY PROVIDING THE NECESSARY MECHANISMS 
FOR THE PREVENTION OF THE OCCURRENCE AND PROTECTION 
FROM THE ADVERSE EFFECTS OF INTERNAL DISPLACEMENT AND FOR 
OTHER PURPOSES 
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the 
Philippines in Congress assembled: 
SECTION 1. Shori Title. - This Act shall be known as the "Internal 
Displacement Act of 2008". 
SEC. 2. Declaration of Principles and State Policies. - Consistent with 
the principles enshrined in the 1987 Constitution, the standards set by 
international humanitarian law and human rights laws, international treaties and 
conventions adhered to by the Philippines, it is also hereby declared a State 
policy to promote and protect the rights of internally displaced persons in 
situations of armed conflict, generalized violence, violations of human rights, land 
conversion and any other land conflict, environmental destruction, aggressive 
implementation of development projects and other natural or human-made 
disasters. 
When an armed conflict of a non-international character is inevitable, the 
State shall ensure the promotion and protection of the rights of the citizens who 
are non-combatants, .who shall enjoy, in full equality, the same rights and 
freedoms under international and domestic law as do other persons in their 
country. These citizens shall not be discriminated against in the enjoyment of 
any rights and freedoms on the ground that they are internally displaced. 
SEC. 3. 
Definition of Terms. 
- 
The following terms, as defined 
accordingly, shall be used in the Act: 
(a) "Internal Displacement" refers to the involuntary movement or forced 
evacuation or expulsion of any person or group of persons to flee or leave their 
homes or places of habitual residence, without crossing an internationally 
recognized State border, as a result of or in order to avoid the effects of armed 
conflict, situations of generalized violence, violations of human rights or other 
natural or human made disasters; 
(b) "Arbitrary Internal Displacement" refers to acts of displacement or any 
other coercive act committed by any person or group of persons and directed 
against the civilian population which are contrary to law, good morals, public 


order and public policy, and committed with abuse of authority, oppressive or 
wanton disregard of the right to life, liberty or property and abode of the residents 
of an area in which they are lawfully present, and characterized by those 
situations as defined Section 5 under this Act; 
(c) "Internally Displaced Person" hereinafter described as an IDP, refers 
to any individual who has suffered harm as a direct result of an arbitrary internal 
displacement as defined above. 
(d) "Order of Battle" refers to a document made by the military, police or 
any law enforcement agency of the Government, listing the names of persons 
and organizations that it perceives to be enemies of the State and that it 
considers as legitimate military targets as combatants that it could deal with, 
through the use of military means allowed by domestic and international law. 
(e) "Apartheid" refers to inhumane acts, including murder, extermination, 
enslavement, deportation or forcible transfer of population, imprisonment or other 
severe deprivation of physical liberty in violation of fundamental rules of 
international law, torture, rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced 
pregnancy, enforced sterilization and other forms of sexual violence of 
comparable gravity, persecution against any identifiable group or collectively on 
political, racial, national, ethnic, cultural, religious, gender or other grounds that 
are universally recognized as impermissible under international law, enforced 
disappearance of persons and other similar acts intentionally causing great 
suffering, or serious injury to body, or to mental or physical health, committed in 
the context of an institutionalized regime of systematic oppression and 
domination by one racial group over any other racial group or groups and 
committed with the intention of maintaining that regime. 
(f) "Ethnic Cleansing" refers to the use of force or intimidation to remove 
people of a certain ethnic or religious group from an area to make it ethnically 
homogenous, and carried out by means of murder, torture, arbitrary arrest and 
detention, extrajudicial executions, rape and sexual assault, confinement of the 
civilian population, deliberate military attacks or threats of attacks on civilians and 
civilian areas, wanton destruction of property, mass murder, mistreatment of 
civilian prisoners and prisoners of war, use of civilians as human shields, 
destruction of cultural property, robbery of personal property, and attacks on 
hospitals, medical personnel, and locations with the red crosshed crescent 
emblem, and other similar criminal offenses. 
SEC. 4. Prevention of Infernal Displacement. - All authorities, groups 
and persons, irrespective of their legal status and applied without any adverse 
distinction, shall respect and ensure compliance with their obligations under 
international law, including human rights law and humanitarian law, so as to 
prevent and avoid conditions that might lead to internal displacement of persons. 
SEC. 5. Prohibition Against Arbifrary lnternal Displacement. - 
The prohibited acts of arbitrary internal displacement shall include those 
committed: 
(1) based on policies of apartheid, "ethnic cleansing" or similar practices 
aimed at or resulting in altering the ethnic, religious or racial 
composition of the affected population; 
(2) in situations of armed conflict, unless the security of the civilians is 
involved; 
L 


(3) in cases of large-scale development projects, which are not justified 
by compelling and overriding public interest; 
(4) in cases of disasters, unless the safety and health of those affected 
requires their evacuation; 
(5) when used as a collective punishment; and 
(6) violations of the rights of IDPs during displacement under Section 8 of 
this Act. 
An Order of Battle, official or otherwise, issued by the military, police or 
any law enforcement agency of the Government, shall not justify an arbitrary or 
internal displacement and shall subject the perpetrators to the penalties provided 
under Section 10 of this Act. 
SEC. 6. Protection from Arbitrary lnfernal Displacemenf. - All authorities, 
including the local government units concerned, groups and persons, irrespective 
of their legal status and applied without any adverse distinction, shall protect its 
citizens against being arbitrarily displaced from hislher home or place of habitual 
residence. 
Displacement shall not be carried out in a manner that violates the rights 
to life, dignity, liberty and security of those affected. Any displacements not 
included in the preceding Section shall not last longer than what is required by 
the circumstances. 
In 
addition, 
the 
following 
safeguards against 
arbitrary 
internal 
displacement shall be observed by all concerned authorities, groups and 
All feasible alternatives shall be explored in order to avoid 
displacement. Where no alternatives exist, all measures shall be 
undertaken to minimize displacement and its adverse effects on the 
population that will be affected; 
If displacement is inevitable, the authorities shall ensure, to the 
greatest practicable extent, that proper accommodation is effected 
in satisfactory conditions of safety, nutrition, health and hygiene, and 
that members of the same family are not separated; 
Indigenous peoples, minorities, peasants, pastoralists and other 
groups with a special dependency on and attachment to their lands 
shall be protected from displacement; 
In situations other than during the emergency stages of armed 
conflict and disaster, the following guarantees shall be complied with: 
(i) 
a specific decision shall be taken by the authority empowered 
by law to order such measures; 
(ii) 
full information on the reasons and procedure for the 
displacement and, where applicable, also on compensation 
and relocation; 
(iii) 
the free and informed consent of those persons to be 
displaced shall be sought; 
3 


(iv) 
the authorities concerned shall endeavor to involve those 
affected, particularly women, in the planning and management 
of their relocation, resettlement and reintegration; 
law enforcement measures, where required, shall be carried 
out by competent legal authorities; and 
the right to an effective remedy, including the review of such 
decisions 
by 
appropriate judicial 
authorities, 
shall 
be 
respected. 
(v) 
(vi) 
SEC. 7. Permanent Prohibition Against Arbitrary Displacement. - The 
prohibition of arbitrary internal displacement and the fundamental safeguards for 
its prevention shall not be suspended under any circumstances, including 
political instability, threat of war, state of war or other public emergencies. 
SEC. 8. Rights During Displacemenf. - The following rights shall be 
afforded internally displaced persons during the period of their displacement, 
without discrimination of any kind, such as those based on race, colour, sex, 
language, religion or belief, political or other opinion, national ethnic or social 
origin, legal or social status, age, disability, property, birth or on any other similar 
criteria: 
a) 
At the minimum, regardless of the circumstances, and without 
discrimination, 
competent authorities 
shall 
provide 
internally 
displaced persons with and ensure safe access to: 
(i) 
(ii) 
basic shelter and housing; 
(iii) 
appropriate clothing; and 
(iv) 
essential and adequate food and nutrition and potable water; 
essential medical and dental services and sanitation, including 
psychological and social services, and essential drugs and 
medicines. 
b) 
Internally displaced persons shall be protected against genocide, 
murder, 
summary 
of 
arbitrary 
executions 
and 
enforced 
disappearances, including abduction or unacknowledged detention, 
threatening or resulting in death. They shall protected from arbitrary 
and discriminatory arrest and detention as a result of their 
displacement and in no case shall they be taken hostage. Threats 
and incitement to commit the foregoing acts shall be prohibited; 
Attacks or other acts of violence against internally displaced persons 
who do not or no longer participate in hostilities shall be prohibited in 
all circumstances. In particular, internally displaced persons shall be 
protected against: 
(i) 
direct or indiscriminate attacks or other acts of violence, 
including the creation of areas wherein attacks on civilians are 
permitted; 
starvation as a method of combat; 
their being used to shield objectives of the military, police or 
any armed group, from attack, or to shield, favor or impede 
operations of the military, police or any armed group; 
(iv) 
attacks against their camps, settlements or evacuation 
centers; and 
(v) 
the use of anti-personnel landmines. 
c) 
(ii) 
(iii) 
4 


d) 
Internally displaced persons, whether or not their liberty has been 
restricted, shall be protected against: 
(i) 
rape, mutilation, torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading 
treatment or punishment, and other outrages upon personal 
dignity, such as acts of gender-specific violence, forced 
prostitution and any form of indecent assault; 
slavery or any contemporary form of slavery, such as sale into 
marriage, sexual exploitation, or forced labor of children; and 
acts of violence intended to spread terror among internally 
displaced persons. 
(ii) 
(iii) 
Threats and incitement to commit any of the foregoing acts shall be 
prohibited. 
Internally displaced persons shall not be interned in or confined to a 
camp. 
If in exceptional circumstances such internment or 
confinement is necessary, it shall not last longer than what is required 
by the circumstances, as may be determined by the Commission on 
Human Rights. 
Internally displaced persons shall be protected against discriminatory 
practices of recruitment into any armed forces or groups as a result of 
their displacement. In particular, any cruel, inhuman or degrading 
practices that compel compliance or punish non-compliance with 
recruitment shall be prohibited in all circumstances; 
Every internally displaced person has the right to liberty of movement 
and freedom to choose his/her residence. In particular, he/she has 
the right to move freely in and out of camps or other settlements, 
subject to existing camp rules and regulations; 
Internally displaced persons, whether or not they are living in camps, 
shall not be discriminated against in the enjoyment of the following 
rights: 
(i) 
freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief, opinion and 
expression; 
(ii) 
to seek freely opportunities for employment and to participate 
in economic activities; 
(iii) 
to associate freely and participate equally in community 
affairs; 
(iv) 
to vote and participate in governmental and public affairs, 
including the right to have access to the means necessary to 
exercise these rights; and 
to communicate in a language they understand. 
e) 
f) 
g) 
h) 
(v) 
Internally displaced persons have the right to: 
(i) 
to leave the country; 
(ii) 
(iii) 
(iv) 
i) 
the right to seek safety in another part of the country; 
seek asylum in another country; and 
be protected against forcible return to resettlement in any 
place where their life, safety, liberty andlor health would be at 
risk. 
5 


The authorities concerned shall issue to the internally displaced 
persons all documents necessary for the enjoyment and exercise of 
their legal rights. 
In particular, the authorities shall facilitate the 
issuance of new documents or the replacement of documents lost in 
the course of displacement, without 
imposing unreasonable 
conditions, and without discrimination against women and men, who 
shall have equal rights to obtain and to be issued the same in their 
own names; 
The authorities concerned shall endeavor to establish the fate and 
whereabouts of internally displaced persons reported missing, and 
cooperate with relevant international organizations engaged in this 
task. 
They shall inform the next of kin on the progress of the 
investigation and notify them of any result; 
The authorities concerned shall endeavor to collect and identify the 
mortal remains of those deceased, prevent their despoliation or 
mutilation, and facilitate the return of those remains to the next of kin 
or dispose of them respectfully; 
Grave sites of internally displaced persons shall be protected and 
respected in all circumstances and IDPs shall 
have the right of 
access to the grave sites of their deceased relatives; 
Members of internally displaced families who wish to remain together 
shall be allowed to do so. 
Families that are separated by 
displacement and whose personal liberty has been restricted by 
internment or confinement in camps, should be reunited as quickly as 
possible and all appropriate measures shall be taken to expedite the 
reunion of such families, particularly when children are involved. 
The State shall encourage the cooperation of international and local 
humanitarian 
organizations engaged in the 
task 
of 
family 
reunification; 
Certain internally displaced persons, such as children, especially 
unaccompanied minors, expectant mothers, mothers with young 
children, female heads of household, persons with disabilities and 
elderly persons, including the wounded and the sick, shall be entitled 
to protection and assistance required by their condition and to 
treatment which takes into account their special needs, such as but 
not limited to their health needs, reproductive health care as well as 
appropriate counseling prevention of contagious and infectious 
diseases, including aids, and access to psychological and social 
services. The right to privacy of married couples shall likewise be 
protected; 
The property and possessions of internally displaced persons shall in 
all circumstances be protected against the following acts: 
(i) 
pillage; 
(ii) 
(iii) 
(iv) 
(v) 
being destroyed or appropriated as a form of collective 
direct or indiscriminate attacks or other acts of violence; 
being used to shield military operations or objectives; 
being made the object of reprisal; 
punishment; and 
6 


(vi) 
against destruction and arbitrary and illegal appropriation, 
occupation or use. 
r) 
The authorities concerned shall ensure that internally displaced 
persons, in particular, displaced children, receive education that shall 
be free and compulsory at the primary level, special efforts should be 
made to ensure the full and equal participation of women and girls in 
educational program, should respect their cultural identify, language 
and religion, educational and training facilities shall be made 
available to IDPs, as son as circumstances permit. 
The rights herein shall not be interpreted as restricting, modifying, or 
impairing the provisions of any international human rights or international 
humanitarian law instrument or rights granted under persons under domestic law. 
SEC. 9. Assistance during displacement, return, resettlement or local 
integration of the displaced persons. 
- 
The military and law enforcement 
agencies conducting operations, the Department of Social Welfare and 
Development (DSWD), the Department of Health (DOH), the corresponding 
government hospital and the local government unit/s concerned shall provide 
immediate relief and humanitarian assistance to internally displaced, families and 
communities. 
Humanitarian assistance shall not be diverted for any political or military 
reasons. All authorities concerned shall grant and facilitate the free passage of 
humanitarian assistance to the internally displaced and ensure rapid, safe and 
unimpeded access of persons engaged in giving such assistance, their transport 
and supplies, to the displaced communities. 
All concerned authorities shall assist the IDPs in the recovery of their 
property and possessions, and shall provide or assist these persons in obtaining 
appropriate compensation or other forms of just reparation. 
When providing 
assistance, 
international and 
local 
humanitarian 
organizations and other appropriate actors shall respect relevant international 
standards and codes of conduct and give due regard to the protection of the 
needs and human rights of the internally displaced and this shall be considered 
in good faith, and not as an unfriendly act or interference in the Government's 
internal affairs. 
Consent thereto shall not be arbitrarily withheld, particularly 
when authorities concerned are unable or willing to provide the required 
humanitarian assistance. 
SEC. I O .  
Penalties. 
a) 
The penalty of reclusion temporal shall be 
imposed upon the following persons: 
( 1 )  Those who directly commit the act of arbitrary internal displacement; 
(2) Those who directly force, instigate, encourage, induce or incite others 
to commit the act of arbitrary internal displacement: 
(3) Those who cooperate in the act of arbitrary internal displacement by 
committing another act, without the act of arbitrary internal 
displacement would not have been carried out; 
(4) Those commanding officers, as well as all elements of the military, 
police andlor other law enforcement agencies, who actually and/or 
directly participate in the act of arbitrary internal displacement; 
7 


(5) Those who cooperated in the execution of arbitrary internal 
displacement by previous or simultaneous acts; 
(6) Those commanding officers of the military, police or other law 
enforcement agencies, or other authorities, for acts of arbitrary internal 
displacement committed by forces under hidher effective command 
and control, or effective authority and control as the case may be, as a 
result of hidher failure to exercise control properly over such forces, 
where said commanding officers or authorities knew or, owing to the 
circumstances at the time, should have known that the forces were 
committing or about to commit such crimes, and failed to take all 
necessary and reasonable means within hislher power to prevent or 
repress their commission, or to submit the matter to the competent 
authorities for investigation and prosecution. 
b) The penalty of prision mayor shall be imposed upon those who attempt 
to commit the offense of arbitrary internal displacement. 
c) The penalty of prision mayor shall be imposed upon the persons who, 
having knowledge of the act arbitrary or internal displacement, and without 
having participated therein, either as principals or accomplices, took part 
subsequent to its commission in any of the following manner: 
(1) By themselves profiting from or assisting the offender to profit 
from the effects of the act or arbitrary internal displacement; 
(2) By concealing the act of arbitrary internal displacement, and/or 
destroying the effects or instruments thereof, in order to prevent 
its discovery; 
(3) By harboring, concealing, or assisting in the escape of the 
principal(s) in the act of arbitrary internal displacement, provided 
the accessory acts are done with the abuse of the official’s public 
functions. 
d) The penalty of prision correccional shall be imposed upon those who 
threaten to commit the act of arbitrary internal displacement. 
e) A public official or employee found criminally liable of having committed 
the prohibited acts provided for in Sections 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 of this Act shall also 
be held administratively liable. 
9 The accessory penalties pertaining to the penalties of reclusion temporal 
g) The penalty of prision correccional shall be imposed upon those who 
SEC. 11. Liability of Concerned Law Enforcement Agency. - Where the 
operation conducted by the military, police and/or other law enforcement 
agencies causes damage to internally displaced persons, the concerned military, 
police and/or other law enforcement agency shall provide jointly and severally the 
necessary financial assistance for the return, resettlement or local integration of 
internally displaced persons. 
and prision mayor shall be imposed. 
violate any of the rights as provided in Sec. 8 of this Act. 
8 


SEC. 12 Jurisdiction of Courts. - The proper and competent civilian 
courts shall have jurisdiction over the offense of arbitrary displacement as 
defined and penalized in this Act. 
SEC. 13. Compensation. - The law enforcement agency/ies conducting 
the operation that caused arbitrary internal displacement, the Department of 
Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the local government unit/s 
concerned shall award the following: 
1) Where death of an individual victim occurs in the course of an 
operation conducted by the military, police and/or other law 
enforcement agencies, the amount of 
Fifty Thousand Pesos 
(P50,OOO.OO) shall be granted to the legal heirs of the victim by way of 
a death benefit; 
2) Where physical, emotional and/or psychological injury is caused to an 
individual victim in the course of an operation conducted by the 
military, police and/or other law enforcement agencies, actual and 
compensatory damages, including moral, nominal, exemplary, and 
temperate damages resulting from such injury, shall be reimbursed; 
and, 
3) Where loss of or damage to property of an individual victim is caused 
in the course of an operation conducted by the military, police and/or 
other law enforcement agencies, the amount corresponding to the fair 
market value of the property lost or destroyed or the amount mutually 
agreed upon, whichever is higher, shall be paid to the victim. 
4) Non-state actors who caused arbitrary internal displacement shall be 
similarly held liable to pay the amounts as stated in Sec. 13 herein. 
SEC. 14. Role of the Commission on Human Rights. - The Commission 
on Human Rights (CHR) shall be designated as the institutional focal point for 
internally displaced persons. 
As such, the CHR shall have the following 
additional functions: 
a) To monitor IDP conditions to ensure that their rights are respected and 
protected in all phases of displacement; 
b) To conduct inquiries, document violations of human rights, assist IDPs 
in seeking redress of grievances and work to ensure an effective 
response by the concerned authorities; 
c) To investigate, on its own or on compliant by any party, all forms of 
human rights violations against IDPs involving civil and political rights 
in accordance with Section 18(1) of Article XI1 of the 1987 Constitution; 
d) To follow up on early warning and ensure effective measures to protect 
the civilian population against internal displacement; 
e) To advise the government on the rights of IDPs towards the shaping of 
a sound national policy and legislation to effectively address situations 
of internal displacement; 
f) To undertake educational activities and training programs for state 
authorities, including the armed forces; 
9 


g) To hold public information drives on the protection and rights of IDPs; 
and 
h) To carry out such other acts that may be necessary to fully implement 
the purposes. 
SEC. 15. 
Appropriations. - The amount of Fifty Million Pesos 
(P50,000,000.00) shall be appropriated to the Commission on Human Rights for 
the initial implementation of the provisions of this Act. The subsequent annual 
funding for the implementation of this Act shall be included in the General 
Appropriations Act. 
SEC. 16. Joint Congressional Oversight Committee. - A Joint 
Congressional Oversight Committee is hereby created, composed of the 
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights, and seven (7) 
other Senators designated by the Senate President, and the Chairman of the 
House Committee on Human Rights, and seven (7) other Members of the House 
of Representatives, designated by the Speaker of the House of Representatives: 
Provided, That, of the seven (7) members to be designated by each House of 
Congress four (4) should represent the Majority and three (3) from the Minority. 
The Joint Congressional Oversight Committee shall have the power to 
review, revise, amend and approve the Implementing Rules and Regulations 
promulgated by the Commission on Human Rights. 
The Joint Congressional Oversight Committee shall also have the power 
to inquire into, summon and investigate the Orders of Battle that are created 
pursuant to this Act, as well as the legal and factual justifications for the inclusion 
of specific persons and groups in the said Orders of Battle. In this regard, the 
Joint Congressional Oversight Committee may issue mandatory process 
directing the transmission of all such documents relevant and necessary for the 
Committee to determine the validity of the inclusion of specific persons or groups 
in the Orders of Battle. For this purpose, the highest ranking officers or heads of 
offices shall be charged with testifying before the Joint Congressional Oversight 
Committee in relation to any inquiries on the Orders of Battle. 
The defense of National Security may not prevent the Joint Congressional 
Oversight Committee from inquiring into the factual and/or legal bases for the 
creation of a specific Order of Battle or the inclusion of specific persons/groups in 
the said Orders of Battle. Should there be a need to inquire into the factual basis 
for the invocation of "national security," the Committee shall adjourn the public 
hearing, convene in executive session and hear the factual basis for such 
invocation. 
Should the Committee be satisfied of the factual basis, the 
Committee will reflect this finding on the record. 
Should the basis not be 
satisfactory to the Committee, the public hearing will continue and the invocation 
may not be used as justification to prevent an inquiry into the factual or legal 
basis for the creation of the Order of Battle or the inclusion of specific names of 
persons or groups. 
SEC. 17. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The Commission on 
Human Rights shall coordinate with the Department of Social Welfare and 
Development, Department of National Defense, Department of Interior and Local 
Government, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of 
10 


Health, and shall likewise consult with the local government units and human 
rights non-governmental organizations and people's organizations. 
SEC. 18. 
Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, executive orders, 
memorandum orders,, memorandum circulars, administrative orders, ordinances 
or any part thereof, which are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, are 
hereby deemed repealed or modified accordingly. 
SEC. 19. Separability Clause. - If any part or provision of this Act shall be 
declared unconstitutional or invalid, other provisions hereof which are not 
affected thereby shall remain in full force and effect. 
SEC. 20. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days upon its 
publication in at least two (2) newspapers of national circulation. 
APPROVED.