House bill seeks database system for sex offenders

MANILA, Philippines - A pending bill in the House of Representatives seeks to create a database of sex offenders to protect children and society from the risks they pose. House Bill 4429 seeks mainly a system of registration and community notification on the release of sex offenders from imprisonment. Under the measure, a sex offender who fails to comply with the registration requirements or provides false information when complying with the process of registration shall suffer the penalty of six years imprisonment. Rep. Narciso Santiago III said his bill also aims to ingrain in the communities patriotism and nationalism and encourage their participation in civic and public affairs. In a statement on the House website, Santiago said supporters of the bill hoped that community awareness will help in preventing future crimes. "The purpose of registration and restrictions is to encourage the protection of children and society by increasing the awareness of the community about the recidivism risk that some offenders may present on release," he said. He said that in the United States, the first American state to require the registration and community notification of the release of sex offenders from incarceration is Washington. This requirement is on top of the offender's legal sentence and other restrictions, he said. These set of laws are called "Megan's Laws" named after 7-year-old Megan Kanka, a New Jersey girl kidnapped, raped and killed in 1994 by a convicted sex criminal who lived in their neighborhood. Santiago quoted US Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, who said their system does not treat dissemination of truthful information in furtherance of a legitimate governmental objective as punishment, the purpose and the principal effect of notification are to inform the public for its own safety, not to humiliate the offender. - GMANews.TV