January 14, 2025 | 5:19pm
MANILA, Philippines — The Senate has approved on third and final reading a bill amending the Safe Spaces Act to include artificial intelligence (AI) and other emerging technologies in addressing online gender-based harassment.
With all 23 senators voting in favor, the bill also strengthens penalties for violators under Republic Act 11313 (Safe Spaces Act).
“This bill responds to the urgent calls by our constituents, particularly young women in schools, to reform the law in order to better address their lived realities. When we made the current law (RA 11313), no one knew what AI was. Today, deep fakes are chronic. And pornography is being created with the use of these emerging technologies,” Sen. Risa Hontiveros said in a statement.
During the plenary session on Tuesday, January 14, a jovial Hontiveros thanked her fellow legislators for passing the bill.
As AI rapidly develops and becomes more accessible, its misuse has grown widespread. There have been cases of AI being used to create deepfake pornography of unsuspecting victims, particularly young women. Even celebrities and politicians are not immune to deepfakes.
The bill introduces harsher penalties to specifically address gender-based sexual harassment, particularly in the workplace. Offenders could face imprisonment for one to six months, along with fines ranging from P10,000 to P100,000. The court may also impose both imprisonment and a fine.
“It strengthens and enhances the existing legislation of the Safe Spaces Act that we pushed for initially. It helps ensure that sexual harassment does not occur in environments wherein individuals expect respect such as public spaces, work spaces, educational settins or online platforms,” Sen. Grace Poe said during the plenary.
The new bill also broadens the definition of public spaces to include streets and alleys in rural areas, as well as fields, farms, coastal areas, and multi-purpose halls.
If passed, the bill will also provide a clear definition of grooming. Under the law, grooming would refer to a pattern of establishing a relationship or emotional connection with a child for the purpose of sexual abuse or exploitation.
“We also need to respond to the multiple cases of teacher-predators. This bill seeks to respond to this by ensuring that adults working in close proximity to children have no history of predatory behavior,” Hontiveros said.
The bill also sets regulations for internet intermediaries regarding the removal of websites containing materials that violate the law.
Under the proposed amendment, internet intermediaries must block access to, remove, or take down the address, uniform resource locator (URL), and content of violating websites within 24 hours of receiving a notification from authorities. However, they are required to preserve the contents, including subscriber or registration information and traffic data, for six months or until the case is resolved. Content data must be preserved for one year, with a possible six-month extension upon approval from the appropriate authority.
Meanwhile, amendments to the Safe Spaces Act are still pending in the House of Representatives.
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