The Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) commends the filing of House Bill No. 10099, a pivotal legislative measure seeking to repeal Article 266-C of the Revised Penal Code, as amended by Republic Act No. 8353 (Anti-Rape Law of 1997).
Filed by Representatives Dadah Kiram Ismula, Jose Manuel “Chel” Diokno, Percival “Perci” Cendaña, and Arlene “Kaka” Bag-ao, HB 10099 seeks to repeal legal provisions that erase criminal liability or penalties for rape if the offender subsequently marries the victim-survivor, or if a wife forgives a husband who committed marital rape.
“There is no place in a just society for a law that allows criminal accountability for rape to be erased through marriage,” PCW Chairperson Ermelita V. Valdeavilla emphasized.
“Article 266-C reduces a public crime to a private compromise. It allows perpetrators to force survivors into marriage to evade justice, trapping women in abusive unions and perpetuating continuous trauma,” she added.
The repeal of Article 266-C is a cornerstone of the Women’s Priority Legislative Agenda (WPLA). The Commission stresses that abolishing this clause is critical to fulfilling the country’s mandates under the Magna Carta of Women (Republic Act No. 9710) and international human rights commitments, particularly the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). Since 2006, the UN CEDAW Committee’s Concluding Observations on the Philippine State Party reports have repeatedly called for the elimination of discriminatory legal provisions that absolve perpetrators of sexual violence through marriage or pardon.
Removing Article 266-C is essential to enacting a truly consent-based anti-rape legal framework. Under a rights-based perspective, rape is recognized as an explicit violation of bodily integrity and personal autonomy, where the primary element is the absence of freely given consent. Consent cannot be inferred from marriage, current or past relationships, silence, lack of physical resistance, or attire.
The urgency of this legislative reform is underscored by official data. In 2025 alone, the Philippine National Police recorded a total of 1,842 cases under Republic Act No. 8353. Archaic legal loopholes like Article 266-C perpetuate underreporting by entrenching gender-insensitive processes and societal stigma against survivors.
PCW calls on lawmakers in both Houses of Congress to prioritize the passage of HB 10099 to close legal gaps that shield abusers from justice.
