PNP chief says anti-hazing law will minimize future incidents
Philippine National Police (PNP) Dir. Gen. Oscar Albayalde welcomed on Thursday the passage of the Anti-Hazing Law, saying it could help curb, if not eradicate, hazing culture in the country’s police and military schools.
Albayalde said that while hazing incidents “have gone very low already” in the Philippine Military Academy (PMA), hazing could not be totally eradicated.
“Well of course, it will be probably – kung hindi mawala totally ‘yan (if it’s not totally eradicated) – it will be minimized. Actually it has gone very low already lalo na sa (especially in the) PMA,” Albayalde said in an interview at an arms exposition in Mandaluyong City.
“’Yung zero incident hindi naman totally na paglabas niyan [anti-hazing law] ay tigil talaga [ang hazing]. There is a time for adjustment… eventually mawawala ‘yan,” he added.
(The zero incident… hazing will not be totally eradicated once anti-hazing law will be implemented. There is a time for adjustment… eventually it will eliminated.)
President Rodrigo Duterte signed on Wednesday Republic Act No. 11053 or the Anti-Hazing Act of 2018, giving teeth to the original 1995 law.
READ: Duterte signs law that bans all forms of hazing
Lawmakers fast-tracked the law’s passage in Congress following the brutal death of Aegis Juris fraternity neophyte, University of Santo Tomas law student Horacio Tomas Castillo III in September last year.
The incident was followed by another beating incident at the Philippine National Police Academy in March, where third year cadets violently assaulted their upperclassmen right after the latter’s commencement rites.
Albayalde, a member of PMA Sinagtala class of 1986, said hazing has been a “long-cherished tradition” at the country’s top military school.
“But of course hindi ‘yung talagang nakakamatay or di yung nakakasakit hanggang mamatay (But of course, it should not be the deadly type). Although we have incidents of casualties sa PMA,” the police chief said. Kristine Macasiray, INQUIRER.net intern/je
