Senator renews call for stronger anti-hazing law

MANILA, Philippines - There should be a stronger law against hazing, Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian reiterated yesterday following reports of a student hospitalized after being beaten up by members of a sorority.

Gatchalian condemned the hazing suffered by Larissa Alilio, a tourism student of the Lyceum of the Philippines University, who was beaten repeatedly by members of the Tau Gamma Sigma sorority.

“Hazing has absolutely no place in modern society. We must replace the 20-year-old law by passing a new one with more teeth to bring offenders to justice,” said Gatchalian, who filed Senate Bill 199 or the proposed the Anti-Hazing Act of 2016 among his first bills in the Senate.

The bill seeks to repeal and replace Republic Act 8049, the Anti-Hazing Law of 1995. 

Gatchalian said this recent incident was especially troubling because the victim was allegedly forced to undergo hazing against her will after she was harassed into joining the sorority.

“Violent youth who subject their fellow students to such debased treatment must be punished to the full extent of the law, and the law should provide for absolutely zero tolerance for hazing in any school, community, or organization,” Gatchalian said. 

Under the bill, any officer or member of a fraternity, sorority, organization or business corporation found to be involved in hazing would face imprisonment of 12 to 20 years and fined P1 million each.

If the officers or members were under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs when the hazing rites took place, they would be imprisoned for 20 to 40 years and fined P2 million each.

The same penalty would be imposed on non-resident or alumni members of the said organizations who participated in the hazing. 

If the hazing results in the death, rape, sodomy or mutilation of the victim, the bill calls for the penalty of imprisonment of 20 to 40 years and a fine of P3 million each for those who participated in the rites.

Gatchalian noted that justice for victims of non-fatal hazing is harder to come by due to underreporting and lack of media coverage. 

“In order to stop hazing, it must be recognized by the law for what it is – a barbaric criminal act that compromises the integrity of any organization that employs it as a means of initiation,” Gatchalian said.

“This legislation seeks to prohibit hazing once and for all while further mandating the registration of all organizations with their host institutions to allow for more efficient and effective enforcement of the provisions of this act,” he added.