Access Calls for Repeal of Unjust Philippines Cybercrime Law

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Access Calls for Repeal of
Unjust Philippines Cybercrime Law

NEW YORK – Only days after protesters offline and online spoke out against a new cybercrime law in the Philippines, Filipino lawmakers began to backtrack on the law and are now considering offering amendments to the legislation.

News that politicians are rethinking the law comes less than 24 hours after over 10,000 people from the Access global movement for digital freedom called on them, set to be delivered to Filipino politicians next week, ahead of a Supreme Court review of the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012. Access (https://www.accessnow.org), along with the Philippine Internet Freedom Alliance (PIFA.ph) and other civil society organizations around the world have been sounding the alarm this week on this unjust law.

Find Access’ campaign here: https://www.accessnow.org/stop-cyber-martial-law

The bill, which went into effect on October 3, affects millions of Internet users in an attempt to update the country’s 82-year-old stringent libel law for the digital age. In the Philippines, where libel is considered a criminal act, the new law aims to target cyber-bullying but leaves open loopholes that could ensnare social media users. Of particular concern is that some lawyers have argued that users who share, retweet, or even ‘Like’ something on Facebook could be subject to fines or imprisonment, even if they did not create the content in question.

“While protecting against the ever growing threat of cybercrime is certainly important, it doesn’t give governments free license to pass laws meant to silence criticism and opposition,” said Brett Solomon, Executive Director of Access. “Severely fining or imprisoning a user solely for sharing a link or retweeting something is indefensible and sets a dangerous precedent for the rest of the world.”

Because of the law’s designation as a “special law,” criminal intent is not required for a prosecution meaning good faith and intent does not come as a defense. The law also violates the equal protection clause by assigning infractions made with computer a penalty one degree higher than those made without one. Additionally, the law stipulates that National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) can collect real-time traffic data on law abiding citizens who have committed no crime.

Access joins with other international organizations and with the Filipino citizens in demanding the repeal of Cybercrime Prevention Act. Major demonstrations spread across the Philippines this week organized Philippine Internet Freedom Alliance (PIFA). The actions began with “Blackout Tuesday” where PIFA encouraged social media users to blackout profile pictures in order to raise awareness about the Cybercrime Prevention Act. However the protests have continued online and offline and expect to reach a critical mass on Oct 9th the date the Supreme Court has set to review the controversial new law.

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