8. Existing legislative and policy frameworks on e-Governance

There is no Philippine law that guarantees the right to Internet access. The e-Commerce Act of 2000 (Republic Act 8792)⁷¹ provides for the recognition and use of electronic commercial and noncommercial transactions and documents, and penalties for unlawful use. There are no legislative frameworks regulating the delivery of digitally enabled services or the openness of the technical architecture of the underlying e-services or citizen charters guaranteeing responsiveness and accountability of e-government services, and specifying redress mechanisms.

Philippines Congress passed Republic Act 10173 (Data Privacy Act of 2012), which provides the legal framework of protecting digitalized personal information of individuals held by government and the private sector and the creation of a National Privacy Commission. The guidelines for implementation of this law are unavailable and the National Privacy Commission is yet to be constituted.

The Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 (Republic Act 10175) is a law drafted to support the Data Privacy Law. The law defines cybercrime and provides for the prevention, investigation, suppression and the imposition of penalties. Other laws that pertain to right to privacy and confidentiality include the Commonwealth Act No. 591 establishing the Bureau of Census and Statistics in 1940,⁷² Republic Act 1161 (The SSS Law),⁷³ Republic Act 1405 (Bank Secrecy Law),⁷⁴ Republic Act 4200 (Wire Tapping Law),⁷⁵ Republic Act 9372 (Human Security Act),⁷⁶ Republic Act 8505 (Rape Victim Assistance),⁷⁷ and Republic Act 7610 (Anti-Child Abuse Law).⁷⁸ New laws have been enacted to address e-VAW such as : Republic Act No. 9995 (Anti- Photo and Video Voyeurism Act of 2009), Republic Act No. 9775 (An Act Defining the Crime of Child Pornography, Prescribing Penalties Thereof and for other Purposes), and the aforementioned Republic Act No. 10175 (Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012).

In the absence of a Freedom of Information Law, Section 7 Article III of the Bill of Rights of the 1987 Constitution ensures that “access to official records and documents and paper pertaining to official acts, transaction, or decisions as well as to government research data used as basis of policy development, shall be afforded the citizens, subject to such limitations as may be provided by law.” The Freedom of Information Bill (FOI), an integral element of the administration’s Good Governance and Anti-Corruption Plan 2012- 2016, pursues “greater transparency, accountability, and citizen participation in governance.”⁷⁹ Section 7 of the Bill of Rights recognizes the right of the people to information on matters of public concern.⁸⁰ An FOI Law would bolster the Code of Ethics of government officials and the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

In 2014, the Philippine Senate passed its version of the FOI Bill. The FOI Bill is awaiting its second reading in the House of Representatives, as of March 2015. President Aquino has said that the passage of the FOI Bill is a priority in his final year in office.⁸¹ Like many other crafted policies the proposed law is silent on gender issues and considerations.

There are bills in Congress that seek to address and fill in the current gaps of the e-government ecosystem (Annex 4). Pending legislation on the right to Internet access, capacity building and digital literacy, the institutionalization of a national government agency dedicated to ICT, e-government, and e-services, will enable the e-government strategy to continue the inclusive and interoperability framework that is being carried out by the e-government Master Plan. Another key legislation that is pending is a bill creating the Department of Information and Communications, which is part of the 2015- 16 congressional agenda of the Aquino administration. The bill is expected to establish a more stable and predictable policy and business environment.⁸²