Title The Revised Penal Code - Book Two - Reyes.pdf ✅

Book Two CRIMES AND PENALTIES Title One CRIMES AGAINST NATIONAL SECURITY AND THE LAW OF NATIONS Crimes against national security. T h e crime s against nationa l securit y are: 1. Treason. (Art. 114 ) 2. Conspirac y and proposal to commit treason. (Art. 115) 3. Misprision of treason. (Art. 116) 4. Espionage . (Art. 117) Crimes against the law of nations. T h e crime s against th e law o f nation s are: 1. Inciting to wa r or giving motive s for reprisals. (Art. 118) 2. Violation of neutrality. (Art. 119) 3. Correspondenc e wit h hostil e country. (Art. 120) 4. Flight to enemy's country. (Art. 121) 5. Piracy in genera l and mutin y on the high sea s or in Philippine waters. (Art. 122) 1
Chapter One CRIMES AGAINST NATIONAL SECURITY Section One. — Treason and espionage Article 114. Treason.' — Any Filipino citizen who levies war against the Philippines or adheres to her enemies, giving them aid or comfort within the Philippines or elsewhere, shall be punished by reclusion perpetua to death2 and shall pay a fine not to exceed 100,000 pesos. No person shall be convicted of treason unless on the testimony of two witnesses at least to the same overt act or on confession of the accused in open court. Likewise, an alien, residing in the Philippines, who commits acts of treason as defined in paragraph 1 of this article shall be punished by reclusion temporal to death3 and shall pay a fine not to exceed 100,000 pesos. (As amended by Sec. 2, Republic Act No. 7659, which took effect on 31 December 1993) Elements of treason: 1. Tha t th e offender is a Filipino citizen or an alien residin g in th e Philippines; 2 . Tha t ther e is a wa r in whic h th e Philippine s is involved; 3. Tha t th e offender eithe r — a. levie s wa r against th e Government, or b. adhere s t o th e enemies, givin g the m aid o r comfort. 'The Indeterminate Sentence Law is not applicable. 2 See Appendix "A," Scale of Penalties. 'See Appendix "A," Scale of Penalties 2
TREASON Art. 114 Treason, defined. Treason is a breach of allegiance to a government, committed by a person who owes allegiance to it. (63 C.J. 814) Nature of the crime. Treason, in its general sense, is the violation by a subject of his allegiance to his sovereign or to the supreme authority of the State. (U.S. vs. Abad, 1 Phil. 437) The offender in treason is either a Filipino citizen or a resident alien. Under the first paragraph of Art. 114, the offender in treason must be a Filipino citizen, as he should not be a foreigner. Before Art. 114 was amended by Executive Order No. 44, it was not possible under the Revised Penal Code to punish for treason, resident aliens who aided the enemies. Now, as amended, the Revised Penal Code punishes a resident alien who commits treason. (People vs. Marcaida, 79 Phil. 283) How to prove that the offender is a Filipino citizen. When the accused is allegedly a Filipino, his being a Filipino citizen may be proved by his prison record which sets out his personal circumstances properly identified as having been filled out with data supplied by the accused himself. (People vs. Martin, 86 Phil. 204; People vs. Morales, 91 Phil. 445) The citizenship of the accused may also be proved by the testimony of witnesses who know him to have been born in the Philippines of Filipino parents. (People vs. Flavier, 89 Phil. 15) Law on treason is of Anglo-American origin. The Philippines Law on treason is of Anglo-American origin and so we have to look for guidance from American sources on its meaning and scope. (People vs. Adriano, 78 Phil. 566) Allegiance defined. The first element of treason is that the offender owes allegiance to the Government of the Philippines. By the term "allegiance" is meant the obligation of fidelity and obedience which the individuals owe to the government under which they live or to their sovereign, in return for the protection they receive. (52 Am. Jur. 797) 3
Art. 114 TREASON Allegiance is either permanent or temporary. While it is true that the permanent allegiance is owed by the alien to his own country, at the same time, he owes a temporary allegiance to the country where he resides. Allegiance as an element of treason seems to be either permanent or temporary. Permanent allegiance consists in the obligation of fidelity and obedience which a citizen or subject owes to his government or sovereign. Temporary allegiance is the obligation of fidelity and obedience which a resident alien owes to our government. (Laurel vs. Misa, 77 Phil. 856) This justifies Executive Order No. 44, amending Art. 114. Treason cannot be committed in time of peace. The second element of treason is that there is a war in which the Philippines is involved. Treason is a war crime. It is not an all-time offense. It cannot be committed in peace time. While there is peace, there are no traitors. Treason may be incubated when peace reigns. Treasonable acts may actually be perpetrated during peace, but there are no traitors until war has started. As treason is basically a war crime, it is punished by the state as a measure of self-defense and self-preservation. The law of treason is an emergency measure. It remains dormant until the emergency arises. But as soon as war starts, it is relentlessly put into effect. (Concurring Opinion of Justice Perfecto, Laurel vs. Misa, 77 Phil. 865) Two ways or modes of committing treason: 1. By levying war against the Government. 2. By adhering to the enemies of the Philippines, giving them aid or comfort. Meaning of "levies war." Levying war requires the concurrence of two things: (1) that there be an actual assembling of men, (2) for the purpose of executing a treasonable design by force. (Ex parte Bollman and Ex parte Swartwout, 1 U,S. Sup. Ct. Rep. [4 Cranch 75], p. 571) There must be an actual assembling of men. Upon searching the house of the accused, the Constabulary officers found a captain's commission under seal. It was held that the mere acceptance of the commission from the secretary of war of the Katipunan 4