In
our present society, Cyberspace has become the stage of the best and worst that
people can create whenever they’re online. Thanks to it, people are given the
chance to showcase their artistic and individual ideas. However, as time
progressed, it has also become the breeding ground for online trolls and cybercriminals.
With that, many Filipino senators have
decided to create and pass a law that may soon change the Philippine cyberspace
forever.
The Republic Act No. 10175, known as
“An act defining Cybercrime, Providing
for the Prevention, Investigation, Suppression and the Imposition of Penalties
therefor and for other Purposes” or to most people as the “Philippine
Cybercrime Prevention Act”, was created in order to provide an environment for the people which reinforces development and acceleration with regards to the exchange and
delivery of information. It was also created to protect the integrity and
confidentiality of the people from any forms of misuse, abuse and illegal
access of cybercriminals. It prevents a
person from using libelous words against another person and stop hackers from
invading the privacy of netizens. From this, we may deduce that the law is very
useful to the people. However, it also has some severe elements that cannot
simply be ignored.
First of all, because of
R.A. No. 10175, any law-abiding citizen who happens to use blogs,
Facebook, and Twitter to pour his or her emotions against any other citizen can
be considered as a cybercriminal. The Philippine Cybercrime
Prevention Act filters what people say and forces them to simply say nice
things. Even if the person is telling the truth, if he or she publicly causes
the dishonor, discredit, or contempt of another person, he or she is effectively considered
a criminal and guilty of Libel. The law basically states that if you can’t say
anything good, then you better say nothing at all or else, it’s six to twelve
years imprisonment and a maximum fine of 1,000,000 pesos for you.
Second, the law also disregards the
freedom of speech of the people. It ignores the Article III of the Bill of Rights of
the1987 Constitution which
states that “No law shall be passed abridging
the freedom of speech, of expression, or of the press, or the right of the
people peaceably to assemble and petition the government for redress of
grievances” and the United Nations
Human Rights Council which declares internet to be a human right. It also
effectively puts out democracy and bestows all the power to the Department of
Justice just like how the freedom of speech
was taken from the people during the Marcos Administration decades ago.
And
lastly, the law compels the Internet users to stop downloading files from a lot
of websites. These files include games, movies, music and torrents. It prevents
the netizens to enjoy the privileges the Internet offers them just because the
Government wants to stop hackers and libelous people from doing their deeds.
For
many years the Philippine Government has been the symbol of freedom and liberty
to the people. Now, thanks to the Cybercrime Law, it has become the very thing that binds
the people in a society divided between darkness and in light.