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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 17) – The rules and regulations for the application of the Antiterrorist Law explicitly establish that protests and other exercises of civil and political rights can be considered terrorism, if they fall within the definition of the law that has been criticized as too broad.
According to Section 4 of the Republic Law 11479 or the Antiterrorist Law of 2020, terrorism will not include defense, protest, dissent, work stoppage, industrial or mass action and other similar exercises of civil and political rights, provided that these sean is not intended to endanger a person or pose a “serious risk” to public safety.
The IRR, published Saturday by the Department of Justice, expands on this provision, saying that individuals who engage in these acts can be held liable for the crime of terrorism when the purpose of their involvement is any of the following:
• Intimidate the general public or a segment of it;
• Create an atmosphere or spread a message of fear;
• Provoke or influence the government or any international organization through intimidation;
• destabilize or seriously destroy fundamental political, economic or social structures;
• Create a public emergency or seriously undermine public safety
“The burden of proving such intent falls on the prosecution arm of the government,” states the IRR.
The lawmakers who wrote and sponsored the measure, as well as the officials who supported it, have cited Section 4 to allay fears that the counterterrorism law could be used to target critics of the government.
READ: Esperon assures critics of the Anti-Terrorism Bill: Activism is not terrorism
Legal experts, constitution writers and human rights defenders have called on the Supreme Court to scrap the law, mainly because of its “vague and overly broad” definition of terrorism.
Terrorism, according to the law and its IRR, also refers to any act intended to cause death or serious physical injury to a person, and extensive damage or destruction to public and private property and critical infrastructure. Terrorists also include those who develop, manufacture, possess, acquire, transport, supply, or use weapons or explosives, and release dangerous substances intended to cause a disproportionate amount of harm.
These acts are punishable by life imprisonment without the benefit of parole.
People who threaten, conspire, propose and incite to commit terrorism will serve 12 years in prison, as well as those who participate in the planning, training, preparation and facilitation of the crime. Any person who has knowledge of the commission of the crime of terrorism, even without active participation, also receives 12 years in prison.
The same penalty is imposed on anyone who “voluntarily and knowingly” joins or recruits members of a terrorist organization. A terrorist organization is one that is outlawed or outlawed by the Court of Appeals, appointed by the United Nations Security Council, or created for the purpose of participating in terrorism.
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