Representative Gatchalian Proposed a "Servando Act" in Congress

As reported by Louis Bacani on July 8, 2014 in the website of the Philippine Star (http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2014/07/08/1343862/proposed-servando-act-seeks-total-ban-frat-hazing ), Valenzuela Representative Sherwin Gatchalian proposed a "Servando Act" in Congress which aims to ban totally hazing in a fraternity.
A photo taken from website of the Philippine Star.  A police officer is shown here inspecting the paddles seized from the alleged members of a fraternity.
      

A Servando Act is a House Bill No. 4714 filed by Rep. Gatchalian that would replace the Anti-Hazing Law following the death of College of St. Benilde (CSB) student Guillo Cesar Servando.  In this connection, the proposed bill is named after Servando.

Accordingly, this new bill would give more teeth to the present law regulating hazing.

The current Anti-Hazing Law or Republic Act No. 8049 has been proven toothless in not only preventing hazing but also in going after those responsible for such violent acts, including school authorities.  As the name suggests that it merely seeks to regulate hazing instead of banning it out totally, as pointed by Rep. Gatchalian.

Rep. Gatchalian was prompted to file the said new bill by the hazing incident involving Servando, who died last June 28 of this year due to injuries from supposed violent initiation rites conducted by members of the CSB chapter of the Tau Gamma Phi fraternity.

A week before Servando's death, another college student, an unidentified 17-year-old from the University of the Philippines, was also hospitalized for two days after undergoing the initiation rites of the Upsilon Sigma Phi fraternity.

Under the proposed bill, hazing and violent initiation rites shall be banned.  It shall also impose heavier penalties including the provision of paying damages to the victims and their family.

Officers of the fraternity, sorority or organization as well as participating members involved in the hazing will face imprisonment of up to 20 years and a fine of P1 million. If found to be under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs, they will be fined P3 million and face the same amount of jail time.

If the hazing resulted to death, rape, sodomy, or mutilation of the victim, participants will be penalized with imprisonment of up to 30 years and a fine of P5 million.

Under the Servando Act, the school will also be fined P5 million if it approved an organization's written application to conduct initiation that resulted in hazing.

Source:  The Philippine Star (http://www.philstar.com/ )

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