MAMAMAYANG Liberal Rep. Leila de Lima has proposed a Comprehensive Refugees and Stateless Persons Protection Act.
A former secretary of the Department of Justice (DOJ), she filed House Bill 7062 on Jan. 8, stating that current protections rely on “fragmented administrative orders and circulars.”
“Consistent with Section 2, Article II of the 1987 Constitution, which adopts the generally accepted principles of international law as part of the law of the land, there is a vital need to codify these principles into a comprehensive law,” she said.
The bill seeks to create a Refugees and Stateless Persons Protection Office (RSPPO) as an “independent and autonomous” agency attached to the DOJ.
“The RSPPO will centralize and professionalize the identification, determination, and protection of persons of concern, ensuring that proceedings are conducted with both fairness and efficiency,” de Lima said in the bill’s explanatory note.
The bill defines persons of concern (PoC) as “refugees, asylum seekers, stateless applicants, stateless persons, and populations at risk of statelessness.”
De Lima listed other key features of the bill in the explanatory note, including the “codification of essential procedural safeguards to ensure that the pursuit of protection does not result in further harm or victimization.”
She said these safeguards include “the principle of non-refoulement, which strictly prohibits the return of any individual to a country where they would face persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, or political opinion”; “alternatives to detention, which affirm that PoC shall not be detained solely on the basis of their status and encourage community-based arrangements while their applications are being resolved”; and “the suspensive effect, which provides that the filing of an application automatically stays any deportation or exclusion proceedings.”
Another key feature of the bill is “the provision of concrete mechanisms to promote the self-reliance and dignity of PoC,” including the right to work, which exempts recognized PoC from the requirement of securing alien employment permits and waives citizenship requirements for national licensure and board examinations; access to education, granting PoC the same rights to basic and secondary education enjoyed by Filipino citizens; and legal access, which ensures free legal assistance through the Public Attorney’s Office and exemptions from judicial and filing fees.De Lima said the country “has served as a safe haven for refugees” since the early 1900s.
Among those welcomed by the Philippines over the years were Jewish people from Europe fleeing Nazi persecution.
“For over a century, the Philippines has turned its rich tradition of hospitality and bayanihan into a lifeline, standing as a global beacon of hope,” she said.
“By enacting the Comprehensive Refugees and Stateless Persons Protection Act, the Philippines reaffirms that the protection of human dignity is a non-negotiable state policy. We move from a tradition of hospitality to a mandate of justice, ensuring that the bayanihan we offer to the world is as enduring as the law itself,” she said.