After 16 long years of concerned citizens’ hard-fought struggle to criminalize enforced disappearance in the country, there is now a law against Enforced Disappearance in the Asian region with the passage of RA No. 10353, otherwise known as the “Anti-Enforced or Involuntary Disappearance Act of 2012.” What’s more, its Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) have been recently crafted and signed.

To make this special penal law an effective tool to combat impunity, the Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD), the International Coalition Against Enforced Disappearances (ICAED) and the Families of Victims of Involuntary Disappearance (FIND) in partnership with the Embassy of Canada and the UP Asian Center, are organizing a forum on “Effective Implementation of RA No. 10353: A Collective Endeavor” on March 6, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the GT Toyota UP Asian Center Auditorium at UP Diliman. This is part of continuing efforts to disseminate to various stakeholders and to the general public the issue of enforced disappearance and the value of this new law to address it.

One of my favorite legislators, Rep. Edcel Lagman of Albay, is the principal author of the law. He will speak on the objectives, the underlying principle and the salient provisions of the law. Justice Secretary Leila De Lima and Human Rights Commissioner Loretta Ann Rosales will share their respective institutional roles and responsibilities in the effective implementation of the law.

Ambassador Christopher Thornley of Canada will give the welcome remarks, and Dr. Carol Sobritchea, dean of the UP Asian Center, will speak on the gender perspective of the human rights issue. 

Source: philstar.com