S.

No, 1083
H. No. 6875

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Begun and held in Metro Manila, on Monday, the twenty-second

day of July, two thousand nineteen.

REPUBLIC ACT No. 114791

AN ACT TO PREVENT, P R O H I B I T A N D P E N A L I Z E
TERRORISM, THEREBY REPEALING REPUBLIC ACT
NO. 9372, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE "HUMAN
SECURITY ACT OF 2007"

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the

Philippines in Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. This Act shall henceforth be

—

known as "The Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020".

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy, — It is declared a policy

of the State to protect l i f e , liberty, and property from
terrorism, to condemn terrorism as inimical and dangerous to
the national security of the country and to the welfare of the
people, and to make terrorism a crime against the Filipino
people, against humanity, and against The Law of Nations.
2

In the implementation of the policy stated above, the

State shall uphold the basic rights and fundamental liberties
of the people as enshrined in the Constitution.

The State recognizes that the fight against terrorism

requires a comprehensive approach, comprising political,
economic, diplomatic, military, and legal means duly taking
into account the root causes of terrorism without
acknowledging these as justifications for terrorist and/or
criminal activities. Such measures shall include conflict
management and post-conflict peacebuilding, addressing the
roots of conflict by building state capacity and promoting
equitable economic development.

Nothing in this Act shall be interpreted as a curtailment,

restriction or diminution of constitutionally recognized powers
of the executive branch of the government. It is to be
understood, however, that the exercise of the constitutionally
recognized powers of the executive department of the
government shall not prejudice respect for human rights which
shall be absolute and protected at all times.

SEC. 3. Definition. of Terms. — as used in this Act:

(a) Critical Infrastructure shall refer to an asset

or s y s t e m , w h e t h e r p h y s i c a l o r v i r t u a l , s o e s s e n t i a l
t o t h e maintenance of vital societal functions or to the
delivery of essential public services that the incapacity
or destruction of such systems and assets would have a
debilitating impact on national defense and security,
national economy, public health or safety, the
administration of justice, and other functions analogous
thereto. It may include, but is not limited to, an asset
or system affecting telecommunications, water and energy
supply, emergency services, food security, fuel supply,
banking and finance, transportation, radio and television,
information systems and technology, chemical and
nuclear sectors;

(b) Designated Person shall refer to:

 Any individual. group of persons, organizations, or
associations designated and/or identified by the United Nations
Security Council, or another jurisdiction, or supranational
 3

jurisdiction as a terrorist, one who finances terrorism, or a

terrorist organization or group; or

Any person, organization, association, or group of persons

designated under paragraph 3 of Section 25 of this Act.

For purposes of this Act, the above definition shall be in

addition to the definition of designated persons under Section
3(e) of Republic Act No. 10168, otherwise known as the
"Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act of 2012".

(c) Extraordinary Rendition, shall refer to the

transfer of a person, suspected of being a terrorist or
supporter of a terrorist organization, association, or
group of persons to a foreign nation for imprisonment
and interrogation on behalf of the transferring nation.
The extraordinary rendition may be done without
framing any formal charges, trial, or approval of the
court.

(d) International Organization shall refer to

an organization established by a treaty or other
instrument governed by international law and
p o s s e s s i n g i t s o w n international legal personality;

(e) Material Support shall refer to any property,

tangible or intangible, or service, including currency
or monetary instruments or financial securities, financial
services, lodging, t r a i n i n g , expert advice or
a s s i s t a n c e , s a f e h o u s e s , f a l s e documentation or
identification, communications equipment, facilities,
weapons, lethal substances, explosives, personnel (one or
more individuals who may be or include oneself),
and transportation;

(f) Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction,

shall r e f e r t o t h e t r a n s f e r a n d e x p o r t o f c h e m i c a l ,
b i o l o g i c a l , radiological, or nuclear weapons, their
means of delivery and related materials;

(g) Proposal to Commit Terrorism is committed

when a person who has decided to commit any of the
crimes defined and penalized under the provisions of
this Act proposes its execution to some other person
or persons;
4

(h) Recruit shall refer to any act to encourage

other people to join a terrorist individual or
organization, association or group of persons
proscribed under Section 26 of this Act, or designated
by the United Nations Security Council as a terrorist
organization, or organized for the purpose of engaging in
terrorism;

(i) Surveillance Activities shall refer to the act of

tracking down, following, or investigating individuals or
organizations; o r t h e t a p p i n g , l i s t e n i n g , i n t e r c e p t i n g ,
a n d r e c o r d i n g o f messages. conversations, discussions,
spoken or written words, i n c l u d i n g c o m p u t e r a n d
n e t w o r k s u r v e i l l a n c e , a n d o t h e r communications of
individuals engaged in terrorism as defined hereunder;

(j) Supranational Jurisdiction shall refer to

a n international organization or union in which the
power and influence of member states transcend
national boundaries or interests to share in decision-
making and vote on issues concerning the collective
body, i.e. the European Union;

(k) Training shall refer to the giving of instruction

or teaching designed to impart a specific skill in
relation to t e r r o r i s m a s d e f i n e d h e r e u n d e r , a s
o p p o s e d t o g e n e r a l knowledge;

(1) Terrorist Individual shall refer to any natural person

who commits any of the acts defined and penalized under
Sections 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10,11 and 12 of this Act;

(m) Terrorist Organization, Association or Group of

Persons shall refer to any entity organized for the purpose
of engaging in terrorism, or those proscribed under Section 26
hereof or the United Nations Security Council-designated
terrorist organization; and

(xi) Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) shall refer to

chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear weapons which are
capable of a high order of destruction or causing mass
casualties. It excludes the means of transporting or propelling
the weapon where such means is a separable and divisible
part from the weapon.
 5

SEC. 4. Terrorism. — Subject to Section 49 of this Act,

terrorism is committed by any person who, within or outside
the Philippines, regardless of the stage of execution:

(a) Engages in acts intended to cause death or

serious bodily injury to any person, or endangers a
person's life;

(b) Engages in acts intended to cause extensive

damage or destruction to a government or public
facility, public place or private property;

(c) Engages in acts intended to cause

extensive interference with, damage or
d e s t r u c t i o n t o c r i t i c a l infrastructure;

(d) Develops, manufactures, possesses, acquires,

transports, supplies or uses weapons, explosives or of
biological, nuclear, radiological or chemical weapons;
and

(e) Release of dangerous substances, or causing fire,

floods or explosions

when the purpose of such act, by its nature and context, is

to intimidate the general public or a segment thereof, create
an atmosphere or spread a message of fear, to provoke or
influence by intimidation the government or any international
organization, or seriously destabilize or destroy the fundamental
political, economic, or social structures of the country, or create
a public emergency or seriously undermine public safety, shall
be guilty of committing terrorism and shall suffer the penalty
of life imprisonment without the benefit of parole and the
benefits of Republic Act No. 10592, otherwise known as "An
Act Amending Articles 29, 94, 97, 98 and 99 of Act No. 3815,
as amended, otherwise known as the Revised Penal Code":
Provided, That, terrorism as defined in this section shall not
include advocacy, protest, dissent, stoppage of work, industrial
or mass action, and other similar exercises of civil and political
rights, which are not intended to cause death or serious
physical harm to a person, to endanger a person's life, or to
create a serious risk to public safety.