During the Legislators Forum held last 28 July 2011 in Manila, Philippine Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile conveyed his support to the Criminal Code Committee for its initiative to craft an organic, modern and truly Filipino criminal code for the Philippines.  He lauded the Members of the Committee and of the Experts Group for their competence and wealth of experience, and expressed confidence that the committee would be able to “determine what changes must be done and what reforms must be undertaken as far as the enforcement of laws is concerned.”

Strong support for the effort was also voiced by Representative Niel C. Tupas, Jr., Chair of the House Committee on Justice who echoed the sentiments towards the need for the Philippine’s Revised Penal Code to be reviewed and revised.

Graced by the presence of Department of Justice Secretary Leila M. de Lima, the forum, which provided the floor for a consultation with key legislators of the country, also served as a venue for several Members of the Experts Group to present key principles discussed during the Experts Group Meetings conducted regularly to undertake the actual compilation, organization, revision and drafting work for the ‘modern’ criminal code for the Philippines.

Presenters during the forum were: Police Chief Superintendent Ricardo C. Marquez (Philippine National Police, PNP) and Director Magtanggol Gatdula (National Bureau of Investigation, NBI) who both presented the latest crime statistics in the country;  Atty. Clemente Clemente (Philippine Judges Association, PJA) on “Moving Towards Universal Criminal Jurisdiction”; Assistant Solicitor General Marissa Guillen (Office of the Solicitor General, OSG) on “Setting the Minimum Age of Criminal Responsibility (MACR); Atty. Lyra Stella Valera, representing Police Chief Superintendent Herold G. Ubalde (PNP), on “Crimes against National Security”;  Atty. Vanessa Joy Ong Pe-Jones (Public Attorneys Office, PAO) on “Crimes against Persons” and Atty. Raoul Creencia (Office of the Government Corporate Counsel, OGCC), “Crimes Against Property: Frauds.”

Functioning effectively as the technical working group, the Experts Group comprises all the members of the Criminal Code Committee, as well as the designated representatives of the other government agencies and offices and non-government organizations, including the Supreme Court (SC), the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), the Philippine National Police (PNP), the Committees on Justice and on Constitutional Amendments, and Revision of Codes and Laws of the Philippine Senate, and Committees on Justice and on Revision of Laws of the Philippine House of Representatives of the Congress of the Philippines, Chief Prosecutors Association (CPROSA), Regional Prosecutors Council, Philippine Judges Association (PJA), Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP), Philippine Association of Law Schools (PALS), Philippine Bar Association (PBA), Philippine Judicial Academy (PhilJA), Office of the Executive Secretary, Transparency International-Philippines (TI Philippines), Prosecutors League of the Philippines (PLP), and Free Legal Assistance Group (FLAG).

With the affirmative confirmations of support garnered from the key legislators in the country, the forum was a success and a milestone for the Experts Group, which will continue its regular meetings this August 2011.