Philippines lawmaker files bill to criminalize necrophilia and desecration of cadavers
A new bill filed by North Cotabato 3rd district Rep. Ma. Alana Samantha Taliño Santos is seeking to criminalize necrophilia and the desecration of cadavers in the Philippines.
The bill, known as House Bill (HB) No.9598, aims to define the crime of cadaver desecration, provide penalties for offenders, and establish criminal and civil liabilities for those guilty of desecrating cadavers.
Under the proposed Act, the penalty of prision mayor shall be imposed on any person who commits the crime of desecration of a human cadaver, with specific acts listed in the bill including dismemberment, disfigurement, mutilation, burning, or any act committed to cause the dead body to be devoured, scattered, or dissipated.
The bill also explicitly prohibits having sexual contact or activity with the dead, commonly known as necrophilia, as well as dumping of cadavers, mutilating cadavers, and destroying tombs or other burial sites.
Santos emphasized that Congress is mandated to prioritize the enactment of measures that protect and enhance the right of all people to human dignity, including the dignity of dead bodies.
The proposed bill is currently pending before the House Committee on Justice, and if passed, it would establish new laws to protect and promote human dignity by penalizing the desecration of cadavers as a separate crime.
