OUR LADY OF FATIMA UNIVERSITY
College of Arts and Sciences
DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND PHILOSOPHY
Valenzuela City
HANDOUTS IN SOC 3
(Philippine Government with Constitution)
For the exclusive use of all Soc3 Students of OLFU, Valenzuela
By: LEOPOLDO CINCO CATCHUELA, A.B.; Ll.B.; M.P.A (Candidate)
Faculty Member, Department of Social Sciences and Philosophy
Submitted to:
Prof. MANUEL F. DELIGENTE, MaEd.
Coordinator, Department of Social Sciences and Philosophy
INTRODUCTION
The study of Political Science
*Political Science is the systematic study of the state and government. The word "political" is derived from the Greek word polis, meaning a city, or what today would be the equivalent of a sovereign state. The word "science" comes from the Latin word scire, "to know." (*Text Book on the Philippine Constituion 2011 by Hector S. De Leon and Hector M. De Leon Jr.)
*Political science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, nation, government, and politics and policies of government. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems, political behavior, and political culture.
Political scientists "see themselves engaged in revealing the relationships underlying political events and conditions, and from these revelations they attempt to construct general principles about the way the world of politics works."
Political science intersects with other fields; including economics, law, sociology, history, anthropology, public administration, public policy, national politics, international relations, comparative politics, psychology, political organization, and political theory. Although it was codified in the 19th century, when all the social sciences were established, political science has ancient roots; indeed, it originated almost 2,500 years ago with the works of Plato and Aristotle.
Political science is commonly divided into distinct sub-disciplines which together constitute the field: Political theory; Comparative politics; Public Administration; International relations; Public law; Political methodology;
Political theory is more concerned with contributions of various classical thinkers such as Aristotle, Niccolò Machiavelli, Cicero, Plato and many others. Comparative politics is the science of comparison and teaching of different types of constitutions, political actors, legislature and associated fields, all of them from an intrastate perspective. International relations deals with the interaction between nation-states as well as intergovernmental and transnational organizations.
Political science is methodologically diverse and appropriates many methods originating in social research. Approaches include positivism, interpretivism, rational choice theory, behavioralism, structuralism, post-structuralism, realism, institutionalism, and pluralism. Political science, as one of the social sciences, uses methods and techniques that relate to the kinds of inquiries sought: primary sources such as historical documents and official records, secondary sources such as scholarly journal articles, survey research, statistical analysis, case studies, experimental research and model building. (*From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia).
Concepts of State and Government
Meaning of State. - A state is a community of persons more or less numerous, permanently occupying a definite portion of territory, having a government of their own to which the great body of inhabitants render obedience, and enjoying freedom from external control.
Elements of a state. - 1. People - The mass of the population living within the state; "people" answers the question, "who governs whom?" There is no specific number requirement; "…the state shall neither be too small nor yet one that seems great but has no unity." (Plato) 2. Territory - demarcated area that rightly belongs to the population; "territory" answers the question, "where?" terrestrial, fluvial, maritime and aerial; should be permanent and large enough to be self-sufficing. 3. Government - Refers to the agency to which the will of the state is formulated, expressed, and carried out. 4. Sovereignty - May be defined as the supreme power of the state to command and enforce obedience to its will from the people within its jurisdiction and corollarily to have freedom from foreign control. "Sovereignty" may be Internal – power of the state to rule within its territory or External – the freedom of the state to carry out its activities without subjection to or control by other states.
*Origin of states
There are several theories concerning the origin of states, among which are:
Divine Right Theory. – It holds that the state is of divine creation and the ruler is ordained by God to govern the people. Reference has been made by advocates of this theory to the laws which Moses received at Mount Sinai;
Necessity or force theory. – It maintains that states must have been created through force, by some great warriors who imposed their will upon the weak;
Paternalistic theory. – It attributes the origin of states to the enlargement of the family which remained under the authority of the father or mother. By natural stages, the family grew into a clan, then developed into a tribe which broadened into a nation and the nation became a state; and
Social contract theory. – It asserts that the early states must have been formed by deliberate and voluntary compact among the people to form a society and organize government for their common good. This theory justifies the right of the people to revolt against a bad ruler. (*Textbook on the Philippine Constitution 2011 by Hector S. De Leon and Hector M. De Leon)
Purpose and necessity of government
Governments of all the countries, including the Philippines, have these purposes. They are defense, national identity, representation, social welfare and infrastructure. Our government according to our Constitution has, basically, three branches - the Executive, the Legislative and the Judicial - that help in the all-round functioning of a government. Take a look at the five main purposes of a government.
Defense: One of these purposes of government is to defend the borders of the nation against foreign invasion. Hence, all governments have some form of defense system that includes the army, the navy and the air force. Maintaining internal order is also one of the critical defense purposes of a government. This is taken care of by the internal police force.
National Identity: Each nation is unique in its own way. Each nation has its own traditions and culture. It is said that for a nation to exist, it must have an identity. For instance, no two flags of any two nations are alike nor are the national anthems and pledges. Hence, one of the most important functions of a government is to protect and uphold the identity of its nation.
Representation: A government represents the interests of the nation. To protect and safeguard the interests of the nation, the government enters into bilateral trade agreements, negotiations, treaties and so on, with the governments of other nations.
Infrastructure: One of the main purposes of the government is to provide good infrastructure to all its countrymen in the form of roads, bridges, drinking water, electricity and communication networks.
Social Welfare: Last but not the least, introducing social welfare programs to protect and fulfill the interests of the minorities, such as to provide education and healthcare facilities to the underprivileged classes of the economy, is one of the primary purposes of the government.
*Forms of Government
The principal forms are the following:
As to number of persons exercising sovereign powers:
Monarchy or one in which the supreme and final authority is in the hands of a single person without regard to the source of his election or the nature or duration of his tenure. Monarchies are further classified into – Absolute monarchy or one in which the ruler rules by divine right; and Limited monarchy or one which the ruler rules in accordance with a constitution.
Aristocracy or one in which political power is exercised by few privileged class which is known as an aristocracy or oligarchy; and
Democracy or one in which political power is exercised by a majority of the people. Democratic governments are further classified into – Direct or pure democracy or one in which the will of the state is formulated or expressed directly and immediately through the people in mass meeting or primary assembly rather than through the medium of delegates or representatives chosen to act for them; and Indirect, representative, or republican democracy or one in which the will of the state is formulated and expressed through the agency of a relatively small and select body of persons chosen by the people to act as their representatives.
As to extent of powers exercised by the central or national government:
Unitary government or one in which the control of national and local affairs is exercised by the central or national government; and
Federal government or one in which the powers of government are divided between two sets of organs, each organ being supreme within its own sphere. The United States is a federal government.
As to relationship between the executive and legislative branches of the government:
Parliamentary government or one in which the state confers upon the legislature the power to terminate the tenure of office of the real executive. Under this system, the Cabinet or ministry is immediately and legally responsible to the legislature and immediately or politically responsible to the electorate, while the titular or nominal executive – the Chief of State – occupies a position of irresponsibility; and
Presidential government or one in which the state makes the executive constitutionally independent of the legislature as regards his tenure and to a large extent as regards his policies and acts and furnishes him with sufficient powers to prevent the legislature from trenching upon the sphere marked out by the constitution as executive independence and prerogative. (*Textbook on the Philippine Constitution 2011 by Hector S. De Leon and Hector M. De Leon)
Main Discussion
A. What is a Constitution?
A Constitution is a body of fundamental rules and maxims by which the powers of government are defined by the sovereign and in accordance with which those powers are habitually exercised. It is the supreme, fundamental law of the land.
The fundamental law that establishes the character of a government by defining the basic principles to which a society must conform; by describing the organization of the government and regulation, distribution, and limitations on the functions of different government departments; and by prescribing the extent and manner of the exercise of its sovereign powers.
B. The Evolution and History of the Philippine Constitution:
The Constitution of the Philippines (In Filipino: Saligang Batas ng Pilipinas) is the supreme law of the Philippines. The Constitution currently in effect was enacted in 1987, during the administration of President Corazon C. Aquino, and is popularly known as the "1987 Constitution". Philippine constitutional law experts recognize three other previous constitutions as having effectively governed the country — the 1935 Commonwealth Constitution, the 1973 Constitution, and the 1986 Freedom Constitution. Constitutions for the Philippines were also drafted and adopted during the short-lived governments of Presidents Emilio Aguinaldo (1898) and José P. Laurel (1943).
Historical constitutions
Constitution of Biak-na-Bato (1897)
The Katipunan revolution led to the Tejeros Convention where, at San Francisco de Malabón, Cavite, on 22 March 1897, the first presidential and vice presidential elections in Philippine history were held—although only the Katipuneros (members of the Katipunan) were able to take part, and not the general populace.
A later meeting of the revolutionary government established there, held on 1 November 1897 at Biak-na-Bato in the town of San Miguel de Mayumo in Bulacán, established the Republic of Biak-na-Bato. The republic had a constitution drafted by Isabelo Artacho and Félix Ferrer and based on the first Cuban Constitution. It is known as the "Constitución Provisional de la República de Filipinas", and was originally written in and promulgated in the Spanish and Tagalog languages.
Malolos Constitution (1899)
The Malolos Constitution was the first republican constitution in Asia. It declared that sovereignty resides exclusively in the people, stated basic civil rights, separated the church and state, and called for the creation of an Assembly of Representatives to act as the legislative body. It also called for a Presidential form of government with the president elected for a term of four years by a majority of the Assembly.
It was titled "Constitución política", and was written in Spanish following the declaration of independence from Spain, proclaimed on January 20, 1899, and was enacted and ratified by the Malolos Congress, a Congress held in Malolos, Bulacan.
Commonwealth and Third Republic (1935)
The 1935 Constitution was written in 1934, approved and adopted by the Commonwealth of the Philippines (1935–1946) and later used by the Third Republic of the Philippines (1946–1972). It was written with an eye to meeting the approval of the United States Government as well, so as to ensure that the U.S. would live up to its promise to grant the Philippines independence and not have a premise to hold onto its "possession" on the grounds that it was too politically immature and hence unready for full, real independence.
The original 1935 Constitution provided for unicameral National Assembly and the President was elected to a six-year term without re-election. It was amended in 1940 to have a bicameral Congress composed of a Senate and House of Representatives, as well the creation of an independent electoral commission. The Constitution now granted the President a four-year term with a maximum of two consecutive terms in office.
A Constitutional Convention was held in 1971 to rewrite the 1935 Constitution. The convention was stained with manifest bribery and corruption. Possibly the most controversial issue was removing the presidential term limit so that Ferdinand E. Marcos could seek election for a third term, which many felt was the true reason for which the convention was called. In any case, the 1935 Constitution was suspended in 1972 with Marcos' proclamation of martial law, the rampant corruption of the constitutional process providing him with one of his major premises for doing so.
Second Republic (1943)
The 1943 Constitution was drafted by a committee appointed by the Philippine Executive Commission, the body established by the Japanese to administer the Philippines in lieu of the Commonwealth of the Philippines which had established a government-in-exile. In mid-1942 Japanese Premier Hideki Tojo had promised the Filipinos "the honor of independence" which meant that the commission would be supplanted by a formal republic.
The Preparatory Committee for Philippine Independence tasked with drafting a new constitution was composed in large part, of members of the prewar National Assembly and of individuals with experience as delegates to the convention that had drafted the 1935 Constitution. Their draft for the republic to be established under the Japanese Occupation, however, would be limited in duration, provide for indirect, instead of direct, legislative elections, and an even stronger executive branch.
Upon approval of the draft by the Committee, the new charter was ratified in 1943 by an assembly of appointed, provincial representatives of the Kalibapi, the organization established by the Japanese to supplant all previous political parties. Upon ratification by the Kalibapi assembly, the Second Republic was formally proclaimed (1943–1945). José P. Laurel was appointed as President by the National Assembly and inaugurated into office in October 1943. Laurel was highly regarded by the Japanese for having openly criticized the US for the way they ran the Philippines, and because he had a degree from Tokyo International University.
The 1943 Constitution remained in force in Japanese-controlled areas of the Philippines, but was never recognized as legitimate or binding by the governments of the United States or of the Commonwealth of the Philippines and guerrilla organizations loyal to them. In late 1944, President Laurel declared a state of war existed with the United States and the British Empire and proclaimed martial law, essentially ruling by decree. His government in turn went into exile in December, 1944, first to Taiwan and then Japan. After the announcement of Japan's surrender, Laurel formally proclaimed the Second Republic as dissolved.
Until the 1960s, the Second Republic, and its officers, were not viewed as legitimate or as having any standing, with the exception of the Supreme Court whose decisions, limited to reviews of criminal and commercial cases as part of a policy of discretion by Chief Justice José Yulo continued to be part of the official records (this was made easier by the Commonwealth never constituting a Supreme Court, and the formal vacancy in the chief justice position for the Commonwealth with the execution of Chief Justice José Abad Santos by the Japanese).
It was only during the Macapagal administration that a partial, political rehabilitation of the Japanese-era republic took place, with the recognition of Laurel as a former president and the addition of his cabinet and other officials to the roster of past government officials. However, the 1943 charter was not taught in schools and the laws of the 1943-44 National Assembly never recognized as valid or relevant.
The New Society and the Fourth Republic (1973)
The 1973 Constitution, promulgated after Marcos' declaration of martial law, was supposed to introduce a parliamentary-style government. Legislative power was vested in a National Assembly whose members were elected for six-year terms. The President was ideally supposed to be elected as the symbolic and purely ceremonial head of state from the Members of the National Assembly for a six-year term and could be re-elected to an unlimited number of terms. Upon election, the President ceased to be a member of the National Assembly.
During his term, the President was not allowed to be a member of a political party or hold any other office. Executive power was meant to be exercised by the Prime Minister who was also elected from the Members of the National Assembly. The Prime Minister was the head of government and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. This constitution was subsequently amended four times (arguably five depending on how one considers Proclamation No. 3 of 1986).
On 16–17 October 1976, a majority of barangay voters (Citizen Assemblies) approved that martial law should be continued and ratified the amendments to the Constitution proposed by President Marcos.
The 1976 amendments were:
an Interim Batasang Pambansa (IBP) substituting for the Interim National Assembly
the President would also become the Prime Minister and he would continue to exercise legislative powers until martial law should have been lifted.
The Sixth Amendment authorized the President to legislate:
Whenever in the judgment of the President there exists a grave emergency or a threat or imminence thereof, or whenever the Interim Batasang Pambansa or the regular National Assembly fails or is unable to act adequately on any matter for any reason that in his judgment requires immediate action, he may, in order to meet the exigency, issue the necessary decrees, orders or letters of instructions, which shall form part of the law of the land.
The 1973 Constitution was further amended in 1980 and 1981. In the 1980 amendment, the retirement age of the members of the Judiciary was extended to 70 years. In the 1981 amendments, the false parliamentary system was formally modified into a French-style semi-presidential system:
executive power was restored to the President;
direct election of the President was restored;
an Executive Committee composed of the Prime Minister and not more than fourteen members was created to "assist the President in the exercise of his powers and functions and in the performance of his duties as he may prescribe;" and the Prime Minister was a mere head of the Cabinet.
Further, the amendments instituted electoral reforms and provided that a natural born citizen of the Philippines who has lost his citizenship may be a transferee of private land for use by him as his residence.
The last amendments in 1984 abolished the Executive Committee and restored the position of Vice-President (which did not exist in the original, unamended 1973 Constitution).
In actual practice, while the 1973 Constitution was ideally supposed to set up a true parliamentary system, the late President Marcos had made use of subterfuge and manipulation in order to keep executive power for himself, rather than devolving executive powers to the Parliament, as headed by the Prime Minister.
The end result was that the 1973 Constitution - due to all amendments and subtle manipulations - was merely the abolition of the Senate and a series of cosmetic text-changes where the old American-derived terminologies such House of Representatives became known as the "Batasang Pambansa" (National Assembly), Departments became known as "Ministries", cabinet secretaries became known as "cabinet ministers", and the President's assistant - the Executive Secretary - became known as the "Prime Minister."
Ultimately, Marcos' so-called "Parliamentary System" therefore functioned as an authoritarian-run Presidential System due to the series of amendments and other modifications put in place after the 1973 Constitution was ratified.
"The 1986 Freedom Constitution"
Following the EDSA People Power Revolution that removed President Ferdinand E. Marcos from office, the new President, Corazon C. Aquino issued Proclamation No. 3 as a provisional constitution. It adopted certain provisions from the 1973 constitution and granted the President broad powers to reorganize this government and remove officials from office, and mandated that the president would appoint a commission to draft a new constitution.
Background of the 1987 Constitution
In 1986, following the People Power Revolution which ousted Ferdinand E. Marcos as president, and following on her own inauguration, Corazon C. Aquino issued Proclamation No. 3, declaring a national policy to implement the reforms mandated by the people, protecting their basic rights, adopting a provisional constitution, and providing for an orderly translation to a government under a new constitution. President Aquino later issued Proclamation No. 9, creating a Constitutional Commission (popularly abbreviated "Con Com" in the Philippines) to frame a new constitution to replace the 1973 Constitution which took effect during the Marcos martial law regime. Aquino appointed 50 members to the Commission.
The members of the Commission were drawn from varied backgrounds, including several former congressmen, a former Supreme Court Chief Justice (Roberto Concepción), a Catholic bishop (Teodoro Bacani) and film director (Lino Brocka). Aquino also deliberately appointed 5 members, including former Labor Minister Blas Ople, who had been allied with Marcos until the latter's ouster. After the Commission had convened, it elected as its president Cecilia Muñoz-Palma, who had emerged as a leading figure in the anti-Marcos opposition following her retirement as the first female Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.
The Commission finished the draft charter within four months after it was convened. Several issues were heatedly debated during the sessions, including on the form of government to adopt, the abolition of the death penalty, the continued retention of the Clark and Subic American military bases, and the integration of economic policies into the Constitution. Brocka would walk out of the Commission before its completion and two other delegates would dissent from the final draft.
The ConCom completed their task on 12 October 1986 and presented the draft constitution to President Aquino on October 15, 1986. After a period of nationwide information campaign, a plebiscite for its ratification was held on February 2, 1987. More than three-fourths of all votes cast, 76.37% (or 17,059,495 voters) favored ratification as against 22.65% (or 5,058,714 voters) who voted against ratification. On 11 February 1987, the new constitution was proclaimed ratified and took effect. On that same day, Aquino, the other government officials, and the Armed Forces of the Philippines pledged allegiance to the Constitution.
C. Significant features of the 1987 Constitution
The Constitution establishes the Philippines as a "democratic and republican State", where "sovereignty resides in the people and all government authority emanates from them" (Section 1, Article II).
Consistent with the doctrine of separation of powers, the powers of the national government are exercised in main by three branches — the Executive branch headed by the President, the Legislative branch composed of Congress and the Judicial branch with the Supreme Court occupying the highest tier of the judiciary.
The President and the members of Congress are directly elected by the people, while the members of the Supreme Court are appointed by the President from a list formed by the Judicial and Bar Council.
As with the American system of government, it is Congress which enacts the laws, subject to the veto power of the President which may nonetheless be overturned by a two-thirds vote of Congress (Section 27(1), Article VI).
The President has the constitutional duty to ensure the faithful execution of the laws (Section 17, Article VII), while the courts are expressly granted the power of judicial review (Section 1, Article VIII), including the power to nullify or interpret laws. The President is also recognized as the commander-in-chief of the armed forces (Section 18, Article VII).
The Constitution also establishes limited political autonomy to the local government units that act as the municipal governments for provinces, cities, municipalities, and barangays. (Section 1, Article X) Local governments are generally considered as falling under the executive branch, yet local legislation requires enactment by duly elected local legislative bodies. The Constitution (Section 3, Article X) mandated that the Congress would enact a Local Government Code. The Congress duly enacted Republic Act No. 7160, The Local Government Code of 1991, which became effective on 1 January 1992.
The Supreme Court has noted that the Bill of Rights "occupies a position of primacy in the fundamental law". The Bill of Rights, contained in Article III, enumerates the specific protections against State power. Many of these guarantees are similar to those provided in the American constitution and other democratic constitutions, including the due process and equal protection clause, the right against unwarranted searches and seizures, the right to free speech and the free exercise of religion, the right against self-incrimination, and the right to habeas corpus. The scope and limitations to these rights have largely been determined by Philippine Supreme Court decisions.
Outside of the Bill of Rights, the Constitution also contains several other provisions enumerating various state policies including, i.e., the affirmation of labor "as a primary social economic force" (Section 14, Article II); the equal protection of "the life of the mother and the life of the unborn from conception" (Section 12, Article II); the "Filipino family as the foundation of the nation" (Article XV, Section 1); the recognition of Filipino as "the national language of the Philippines" (Section 6, Article XVI), and even a requirement that "all educational institutions shall undertake regular sports activities throughout the country in cooperation with athletic clubs and other sectors." (Section 19.1, Article XIV)
Whether these provisions may, by themselves, be the source of enforceable rights without accompanying legislation has been the subject of considerable debate in the legal sphere and within the Supreme Court. The Court, for example, has ruled that a provision requiring that the State "guarantee equal access to opportunities to public service" could not be enforced without accompanying legislation, and thus could not bar the disallowance of so-called "nuisance candidates" in presidential elections.
But in another case, the Court held that a provision requiring that the State "protect and advance the right of the people to a balanced and healthful ecology" did not require implementing legislation to become the source of operative rights.
D. Parts of the 1987 Constitution
The Constitution is divided into 18 parts, excluding the Preamble, which are called Articles. The Articles are as follows:
Article I - National Territory
Article II - Declaration of Principles and State Policies
Article III - Bill of Rights
Article IV - Citizenship
Article V - Suffrage
Article VI - Legislative Department
Article VII - Executive Department
Article VIII - Judicial Department
Article IX - Constitutional Commission
Article X - Local Government
Article XI - Accountability of Public Officers
Article XII - National Economy and Patrimony
Article XIII - Social Justice and Human Rights
Article XIV - Education, Science and Technology, Arts, Culture and Sports
Article XV - The Family
Article XVI - General Provisions
Article XVII - Amendments or Revisions
Article XVIII - Transitory Provisions
E. Preamble of the 1987 Constitution
The Preamble reads:
"We, the sovereign Filipino people, imploring the aid of Almighty God, in order to build a just and humane society, and establish a Government that shall embody our ideals and aspirations, promote the common good, conserve and develop our patrimony, and secure to ourselves and our posterity, the blessings of independence and democracy under the rule of law and a regime of truth, justice, freedom, love, equality, and peace, do ordain and promulgate this Constitution."
Meaning of Preamble
The term preamble is derived from the Latin term preambulare, which means, "to walk before." It is an invocation or the opening prayer in any activity or the prologue of the constitution, invoking the highest sovereign God Almighty to bless this instrument. If we looked deeper into the preamble, this is not an integral part of the constitution and could not enforced, however its significance is that studies made showed that almost all of the constitution made to contain a preamble.
Objectives of the Preamble
It is generally considered that a preamble is not a necessary part of a constitution, but as an introductory part, it is needed in the Philippine constitution. The preamble of the Philippine constitution shows its framers and to whom it is addressed to and also the general purposes and basic principles of the charter. As interpreted, the preamble has a value in the interpretation of vague or not clear provisions of the constitution like the promotions of the constitution like that of the general welfare and not for private purposes.
F. The National Territory
ARTICLE I - NATIONAL TERRITORY
"The national territory comprises the Philippine archipelago, with all the islands and waters embraced therein, and all other territories over which the Philippines has sovereignty or jurisdiction, consisting of its terrestrial, fluvial and aerial domains, including its territorial sea, the seabed, the subsoil, the insular shelves, and other submarine areas. The waters around, between, and connecting the islands of the archipelago, regardless of their breadth and dimensions, form part of the internal waters of the Philippines."
Philippine Archipelago. – (1) Treaty of Paris, December 10 1898 – cessation of the Philippine Islands by Spain to the United States; (2) Treaty of Washington November 7 1900 – clarifying territories to the US by Spain, particularly the islands of Cagayan Sulu and Sibutu; (3) Convention between US and Great Britain 1930– delimiting the boundary between North Borneo and Philippine Archipelago.
What comprises the National Territory?
The Philippine Archipelago with all the islands embraced therein -
Under the UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea), it is a group of islands, interconnecting waters and other natural features which are so closely inter-related that such islands, waters and natural features from an intrinsic geographical, economic and political entity, or which historically regarded as such.
2 Elements of Archipelagic Principle. - A. Definition of internal waters; B. Straight baseline method of delineating the territorial sea. Straight Baseline Method - allows a country with offshore islands and/or very jagged coastlines to calculate its territorial seas from straight lines drawn from a point on the coast to the islands, or from island to island. One then "connects the dots" literally, and the water behind the lines is designated internal waters, while waters away from the line and toward open waters are considered territorial seas.
All other territories over which the Philippines has sovereignty or jurisdiction -
Includes any territory that presently belongs or might in the future belong to the Philippines through any of the accepted international modes of acquiring territory.
Batanes (1935 Constitution); Other territories belonging to the Philippines by historic or legal title (1973 Constitution); Claim to Sabah; Spratly Islands (PD 1596 of June 11 1968)
Components of National Territory:
I. Terrestrial – refers to the land mass, which may be integrate or dismembered, or partly bound by water or consists of one whole island. It includes all the resources attached to the land.
II. Fluvial
a. Internal waters - the waters around, between and connecting the islands of the archipelago, regardless of their breadth and dimensions.
b. Archipelagic waters – waters enclosed by the archipelagic baselines, regardless of their depth or distance from the coast.
Archipelagic State – state made up of one or two archipelagos
Straight Archipelagic Baseline – determine the archipelagic waters, the state shall draw straight baselines connecting the outermost points of the outermost islands and drying reef provided that within such baselines are included the main islands and an area in which the ratio of the water to the area of land, including atolls, is between 1:1 and 9:1. The length of such baselines shall not exceed 100 nautical miles, except that up to 3 per cent of the total number of baselines enclosing any archipelago may exceed that length, up to a maximum length of 125 nautical miles. The drawing of such baselines shall not depart to any appreciable extent from the general configuration of the archipelago.
c. Territorial sea - belt of the sea located between the coast and internal waters of the coastal state on the one hand, and the high seas on the other, extending up to 12 nautical miles from the low water mark
d. Contiguous zone - Extends up to 12 nautical miles from the territorial sea. Although not part of the territory, the coastal State may exercise jurisdiction to prevent infringement of customs, fiscal, immigration or sanitary laws.
Principle of Innocent Passage – guarantees that all vessels, whatever flag that they are flying, can freely cross all territorial seas.
e. Exclusive economic zone - Body of water extending up to 200 nautical miles, within which the state may exercise sovereign rights to explore, exploit, conserve and manage the natural resources.
f. Continental shelf – the seabed and subsoil of the submarine areas extending beyond the Philippine territorial sea.
g. High seas – res communes; not territory of any particular State. They are beyond the jurisdiction and sovereign rights of the State.
III. Aerial – Rules governing the high seas also apply to outer space, which is considered as res communes.
Kármán Line – lies an altitude of 100 km (62 mi) above the Earth's sea level and is commonly define the boundary between the Earth's atmosphere and outer space.
The need for a Constitutional provisions on National Territory
There is no rule in International Law that delimits a state's territorial boundaries in the Constitution. The reason is, with or without its provision, the state, under International Law, has the unquestioned right of jurisdiction over the extent of its territory. Likewise, it will not prevent other states from claiming territories which they think belong to them in accordance with the modes of acquiring territory.
G. Declaration of Principles and State Policies – In Article II, its nature of the constitution is considered as the political creed of the nation as: (1) it summarizes the principles and policies, especially pertaining to the legislative and executive departments as the source of policy decision makers; (2) the role of the executive and the legislative departments of the system is the enforcement of laws.
Declaration of Principles and State Policies - statement of the basic ideological principles and policies that underlie the Constitution. The provisions shed light on the meaning of the other provisions of the Constitution and they are a guide for all departments of the government in the implementation of the Constitution.
Principles - binding rules which must be observed in the conduct of government (Sections 1-6). Policies - guidelines for the orientation of the state (Sections 7-28)
Article II – DECLARATION OF PRINCIPLES AND STATE POLICIES
PRINCIPLES
Section 1. The Philippines is a democratic and republican State. Sovereignty resides in the people and all government authority emanates from them.
The Philippines, a democratic and republican state.
A republican government is a democratic government by representatives chosen by the people at large. The essence therefore, of a republican state is indirect rule.
It embodies some features of a pure or direct democracy such as initiative, referendum, and recall.
Manifestations of a democratic and republican state:
The existence of a bill of right;
The observance of the rule of majority;
The observance of the principle that ours is a government of laws, and not of men;
The presence of election through popular will;
The observance of the principle of separation of powers and the system of checks and balances;
The observance of the principle that the legislation cannot pass irrepealable laws;
The observance of the law on public officers;
The observance of the principle that the State cannot be sued without its consent.
Sovereignty implies the supreme authority to govern, thus the Filipino people, being sovereign people have the right to constitute their own government, to change it, and define its jurisdiction and powers. Exercised indirectly through public officials. Exercised directly through suffrage.
Section 1 above impliedly recognizes that the people, as the ultimate judges of their destiny, can resort to revolution as a matter of right. A provision in the Constitution, however, expressly recognizing the people's right to revolt against an oppressive or tyrannical government is not necessary and proper.
Section 2. The Philippines renounces war as an instrument of national policy, adopts the generally accepted principles of international law as part of the law of the land and adheres to the policy of peace, equality, justice, freedom, cooperation, and amity with all nations.
Case Analysis. - With the conflict in the claim of Spratleys intensifying, China decided to launch an all out attack to the Philippines. Can the Philippines engage in war? The declaration refers only to the renunciation by the Philippines of aggressive war, not a war in defense of her national honor and integrity. Thus, when provoked and attacked the Philippines can retaliate and engage into war.
Renunciation of war as an instrument of national policy. Adoption of the generally accepted principles of international law as part of our law. International law refers to the body of rules and principles which governs the relations of nations and their respective peoples in their intercourse with one another.
The doctrine of incorporation is the automatic adoption of international law as part of the law of the Philippines.
The Philippines seeks only peace and friendship with her neighbors and all countries of the world, regardless of race, creed, ideology, and political system, on the basis of mutual trust, respect, and cooperation. Adherence to the policy of peace, etc., with all nations.
Section 3. Civilian authority is, at all times, supreme over the military. The Armed Forces of the Philippines is the protector of the people and the State. Its goal is to secure the sovereignty of the State and the integrity of the national territory.
Supremacy of civilian authority over the military is -
Inherent in a republican system. As a republican government, it is that civilian authority is above the military and is internationally recognized. This is a traditionally accepted principle as one of the separation of powers which is significant during periods of martial law or suspension of the writ of habeas corpus. (Article III, Sec. 15; Art. VII, Sec. 18)
It is a safeguard against military dictatorship. To safeguard the abuses of the military civilian government like the republican and democratic government has the authority to appoint and control the military, like the President who is the Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
Section 4. The prime duty of the Government is to serve and protect the people. The Government may call upon the people to defend the State and, in the fulfillment thereof, all citizens may be required, under conditions provided by law, to render personal, military or civil service.
"… the foremost duty of the government is to serve and protect the people. The government exist for the people and not the people for the government."
Prime duty of the Government
Defense of the State by the people against foreign aggression …the government may call upon the people to defend the State. For self-preservation and to defend its territorial honor and integrity, the Philippines can engage in a defensive war. The defense of the State is one of the duties of a citizen.
Military and civil service by the people
Defense of State performed through an army. The joint obligations of the government and the people cannot be performed without an army. It is apparently clear that an army should be organized, thus, military and civil service. Military services here means the armed forces involvement while civil service means employment of the citizens to munitions plants or related employment of the Armed forces of the Philippines.
Compulsory. Compulsory is the compilation of citizens to render military, or civil service. Any citizen recruits cannot refuse to render military or civil service according to law.
Personal. Personal means rendering of service through another.
By Law. This point to preventive arbitrariness on the part of public officials to render military or civil service.
Section 5. The maintenance of peace and order, the protection of life, liberty, and property, and promotion of the general welfare are essential for the enjoyment by all the people of the blessings of democracy.
Only when peace and order, security, and a life of dignity are established and maintained, will political stability and economic prosperity become attainable and the people truly enjoy the "blessings of independence and democracy."
Section 6. The separation of Church and State shall be inviolable.
Principle of separation of the Church and State. - The principle simply means that the Church is not to interfere in purely political matters or temporal aspects of man's life and the State, in purely matters of religion and morals, which are the exclusive concerns of the other.
The State shall have no official religion; The State cannot set up a church, whether or not supported with funds; Nor aid one religion, aid all religions, or prefer one religion over another; Every person is free to profess belief or disbelief in any religion;
Meaning of "establishment of religion clause. - Every religious minister is free to practice his calling; and the State cannot punish a person for entertaining or professing religious beliefs or disbeliefs. Preamble – The command that Church and State be separate is not to be interpreted to mean hostility to religion.
Respect of religion. - Our Constitution and laws exempt from taxation, properties devoted exclusively to religious purposes; No hostility towards religion.
The use of public money or property is not prohibited when a priest, preacher, minister, or dignitary as such is assigned to the armed forces, or to any penal institution, or government orphanage or leprosarium; Optional religious instruction in public elementary and high school is by constitutional mandate allowed; Thursday and Friday of Holy Week, Christmas Day and Sundays are made legal holidays because of the idea that their observance is conducive to beneficial moral results; and the law punishes polygamy and bigamy, and certain crimes against worship are considered crimes against the fundamental laws of the State.
Reason underlying the principle. - It is significant that the separation of the State and the Church is to protect Philippine society from using each other for their self-interest.
STATE POLICIES
Section 7. The State shall pursue an independent foreign policy. In its relations with other states the paramount consideration shall be national sovereignty, territorial integrity, national interest, and the right to self- determination.
Foreign policy is a set of guideline followed by a government of a country in order to promote its national interest through the conduct of its relations with other countries.
Foreign Policy of the Philippines. - Foreign policy is the interaction of states with each other. States could not exist without the other since trade and exchange of culture and technology is the basis of its development. It is the objective of a State to promote international relationships for national interest.
Foreign policy therefore is an instrument of domestic policy. As constituted in our constitution, the State has to pursue an independent foreign policy, but limits its dependency from another.
Formulation and conduct of foreign policy. - The president formulates our foreign policy principally with the help of the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Pursuit of an independent foreign policy. - An independent foreign policy means one that is not subordinate or subject to nor dependent upon the support of another government. An independent foreign policy, however, it is not one that completely rejects advice or assistance from without. In general , our basic foreign policy objective is to establish friendly relations with all countries of the world regardless of race, religion, ideology and social system and to promote as much beneficial relationship with them particularly in economic and trade activities.
Paramount consideration. - In its relations with other states, the paramount consideration of the Philippines shall be national sovereignty, territorial integrity, national interest, and the right to self-determination.
Section 8. The Philippines, consistent with the national interest, adopts and pursues a policy of freedom from nuclear weapons in its territory.
Section 9. The State shall promote a just and dynamic social order that will ensure the prosperity and independence of the nation and free the people from poverty through policies that provide adequate social services, promote full employment, a rising standard of living, and an improved quality of life for all.
Policies necessary to be pursued. – Adequate social services, promote full employment, a rising standard of living, and an improved quality of life for all.
Just and dynamic social order. Solving the problem of mass poverty; The goal is to reduce that political and economic power of privileged few by equalizing widely differing standards and opportunities for advancement and raise the masses of our people from a life of misery and deprivation to a qualitative life worthy of human dignity and respect.
Section 10. The State shall promote social justice in all phases of national development.
In the fulfillment of this duty, the State must give preferential attention to the welfare of the less fortunate members of the community, those who have less in life.
Section 11. The State values the dignity of every human person and guarantees full respect for human rights.
…the individual enjoy certain rights which cannot be modified or taken away by the lawmaking body."
These rights are protected or guaranteed because of the belief in the inherent dignity and basic moral worth of every human person.
..the human person is the end of every social organization…
The value accorded to human dignity is measured by the extent of respect for human rights, principally the rights to life, liberty and property.
Section 12. The State recognizes the sanctity of family life and shall protect and strengthen the family as a basic autonomous social institution. It shall equally protect the life of the mother and the life of the unborn from conception. The natural and primary right and duty of parents in the rearing of the youth for civic efficiency and the development of moral character shall receive the support of the Government.
Right to life of unborn from conception. - According to the Catholic Moral Code, the unborn child is already considered a human being and subject to human rights. It is the obligation of the State to protect the unborn child.
This provision of the Constitution is a preventive measure of the possibility of abortion being legalized by future legislation. The youth's participation in nation building must be maintained as a joint action by the State and family.
Section 13. The State recognizes the vital role of the youth in nation-building and shall promote and protect their physical, moral, spiritual, intellectual, and social well-being. It shall inculcate in the youth patriotism and nationalism, and encourage their involvement in public and civic affairs.
The youth as future leaders. - The youth are the backbones of the Philippine society and comprise the great majority of our people and therefore is the concern of the State to promote and protect their well-being. It could not be denied that today's youth are more informed and articulate and politically informed. It is for this reason that more youth today are involved in radicalism and in policy-making decisions of the country.
Section 14. The State recognizes the role of women in nation-building, and shall ensure the fundamental equality before the law of women and men.
Women participation in nation-building. - It is generally accepted that the role of women both in business and politics cannot be over-emphasized. It must be recalled that Filipino women during the past decades especially during the colonization days took active part in nation-building, much more the current events that women played an important role in politics. Men compared to women are more susceptible to graft and corruption, the reason that confidence on women had evolved.
It is on this aspect that the Constitution gives recognition of the role of women not only in the management of the homes but also in nation-building.
Section 15. The State shall protect and promote the right to health of the people and instill health consciousness among them.
Right to health. - Since people are the basic social unit of government, it is the obligation of the State to promote and protect the right of the people to health. Healthy people means productivity and consciousness to their participation in nation-building. (Article XIII, Secs. 11-13)
Section 16. The State shall protect and advance the right of the people to a balanced and healthful ecology in accord with the rhythm and harmony of nature.
It is the constitutional right of the people to have a balance and healthful ecology. - Ecology refers to the branch of science that deals with the study of the relationships of living things (organisms, plants and animals) and their environments. (Article XII. Sec. 3)
Section 17. The State shall give priority to education, science and technology, arts, culture, and sports to foster patriotism and nationalism, accelerate social progress, and promote total human liberation and development.
Section 18. The State affirms labor as a primary social economic force. It shall protect the rights of workers and promote their welfare.
Section 19. The State shall develop a self-reliant and independent national economy effectively controlled by Filipinos.
Economic development is the ultimate goal of the State. - In the declaration, Section 19 outlines the constitutional guidelines in the development of the economy as a policy in order to achieve economic self-reliance, independent national economy and effective Filipino control of the economy. (Article XII, National Economy and Patrimony, Sec. 1)
Section 20. The State recognizes the indispensable role of the private sector, encourages private enterprise, and provides incentives to needed investments.
Section 21. The State shall promote comprehensive rural development and agrarian reform.
Section 22. The State recognizes and promotes the rights of indigenous cultural communities within the framework of national unity and development.
"Cultural minorities" refers to that groups of Filipinos with cultural inferiority. This is so because these groups had swayed away from civilization of Philippine society.
Section 23. The State shall encourage non-governmental, community-based, or sectoral organizations that promote the welfare of the nation.
Section 24. The State recognizes the vital role of communication and information in nation-building.
Section 25. The State shall ensure the autonomy of local governments.
Section 26. The State shall guarantee equal access to opportunities for public service, and prohibit political dynasties as may be defined by law.
Citizen has all the opportunities to public service (Article VI, Secs. 4, 5 and 7 and Article X, Sec. 8). - In a democratic system of government, it is a constitutional policy that prohibits political dynasties. This is so because when political dynasties exist there is no equal access to opportunities for public service.
Section 27. The State shall maintain honesty and integrity in the public service and take positive and effective measures against graft and corruption.
Section 28. Subject to reasonable conditions prescribed by law, the State adopts and implements a policy of full public disclosure of all its transactions involving public interest.
The essence of democratic system of government that the people have the right to examine all government transactions. In a society like ours, where democratic principles are adhered to all transactions by the government which involve public interest must be publicly presented and discussed to the Filipino people.
The Filipino people have all the rights to know such public transactions, especially involving expenditures of public funds. However, for reasons of government systems management, limitations are made like records involving the security of the State or those which are classified as confidential. (Article II, Section 7).
H. Bill of Rights – Composed of 22 sections, enumerates the rights and privileges of people guaranteed by no less than the constitution. Such rights and privileges corresponding to their respective section number, may be summarized, to wit:
1. Right to Due Process and Equal Protection of the Laws;
2. Right to Just Compensation in Eminent Domain;
3. Right Against Unreasonable Searches and Seizures;
4. Right to Privacy of Communication and Correspondence;
5. Liberty of Abode and of Travel;
6. Right to Information on Matters of Public Concern;
7. Right to Form Associations;
8. Freedom of Religion;
9. Freedom of Speech, Press and Assembly;
10. Right Against Enactment of Law Granting Nobility Title;
11. Right Against Impairment of Contracts;
12. Right Against Enactment of an Ex-Post Facto Law and Bill of Attainder;
13. Non-Imprisonment from Debt or Non-Payment of Poll Tax;
14. Right Against Involuntary Servitude;
15. Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus;
16. Right to Speedy Disposition of Cases;
17. Right to Criminal Due process;
18. Right to Bail;
19. Right of the Accused, which are –
(a) Presumption of Innocence
(b) Right to be Heard
(c) Right to be Informed of the Nature and Cause of Accusation
(d) Right to Speedy, Impartial and Public Trial
(e) Right to Confrontation and
(f) Right to Compulsory Process to Secure Attendance of Witnesses
20. Right Against Self-Incrimination including the Rights to Remain silent,
to Counsel and to be informed of such right;
21. Right Against Excessive Fines and Cruel or Unusual Punishment;
22. Right Against Double Jeopardy; and
23. Free Access to the Courts
The foregoing rights, while denominated as constitutional rights, are never absolute. They are usually limited by the Police Power of the State and to extent by the power of Eminent Domain and Taxation. Police Power refers to the regulation of individual rights in the interest of public welfare, public health and safety, public morals and national security among others
