Republic Act No. 11479 (Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020)

The law aims to prevent and punish terrorism. It defines terrorism as various acts that cause death or serious injury to a person, damage to government facility, public place, or private property, and damage to critical infrastructure. The law specifically punishes the development, possession, or use of weapons and the release of dangerous substances or causing explosions. However, this law has been criticized for jeopardizing human rights.[1]

[1] See, for example, “Philippines: Dangerous Anti-terror Law Yet Another Setback for Human Rights,” Amnesty International, July 3, 2020, https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2020/07/philippines-dangerous-antiterror-law-yet-another-setback-for-human-rights/; and “Philippines: New Anti-Terrorism Act Endangers Rights,” Human Rights Watch, June 5, 2020, https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/06/05/philippines-new-anti-terrorism-act-endangers-rights.