INTERNATIONAL DAY OF THE DISAPPEARED
AUGUST 30, 2013
Families and Advocates Against Enforced Disappearance urge Asian governments to bring the Desaparecidos home
Republic Act 10353 or the “Anti-Enforced Disappearance Act of 2012, which was enacted into law on 21 December 2012 and whose Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) was promulgated on 12 February 2013, clearly define and penalize the act of enforced disappearance as a distinct and separate criminal offense.
The families of victims enforced disappearance in the Philippines have pledged to utilize the new law as a measure to combat impunity and guarantee substantial remedies to victims and their families.
While AFAD members laud the Philippine government for the passage of RA 10353 as an acknowledgement that the country needs to seriously address the problem of enforced disappearance, they are however disturbed that enforced disappearances persist under the present dispensation even as past cases remain unresolved. They take note for example, of the case of the three Islamic scholars en route to Sudan who were disappeared inside the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 on January 3, 2012. While the Manila-based AFAD takes pride in the fact that the Philippines is the first Asian country to have an anti-enforced disappearance law in Asia, it stresses the importance of ensure the law’s full implementation and set a good example for its neighboring Asian states to imitate.
