Alarmed by the increasing number of disappearances, Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago is pushing for the passage of a law making enforced and involuntary disappearances a crime.

If it becomes a law, Santiago said she believes it will drastically lessen if not totally eliminated cases of abduction and similar crimes related to human rights violations.

Santiago’s Senate Bill No. 1455 seeks to impose penalties against perpetrators of enforced or involuntary disappearances, and also provides for the compensation and rehabilitation of the victims and their families.

“Cases of involuntary disappearances are usually filed under kidnapping, murder, or serious illegal detention. They are some of the cruelest forms of human rights violations and our laws should recognize this distinction from other offenses,” she said.

Santiago said enforced or involuntary disappearances involve the deprivation of liberty by agents of the state, and the refusal to acknowledge the deprivation of liberty or concealment of information on the victim.

Based on records she gathered, the Families of Victims of Involuntary Disappearance (FIND) reported 1450 documented cases of enforced and involuntary disappearances in the country as of September 2006.

“Crimes committed by agents of the state against the very people they have sworn to protect are reprehensible acts that must be punished severely. If agents of the state use their powers to mastermind and execute wrongful and cruel acts that deprive the people of their freedom or life, they must be held liable both criminally and civilly,” Santiago said.