Philippines criminalises state abductions

The Philippines has passed landmark legislation that criminalises state abductions, a presidential spokeswoman said yesterday, in a move hailed by human rights groups.
Under the new law "enforced disappearances" -- abductions carried out by security forces usually targeting anti-government activists and critics -- will be treated separately to kidnapping and offenders could face life in prison.
Human Rights Watch welcomed the new law, saying it was "the first of its kind in Asia and a major milestone in ending this horrific human rights violation".
Under the legislation the military can no longer cite the so-called "order of battle" -- a list of supposed communist insurgents that until now was used to justify holding a person.
The law also prohibits secret detention facilities and authorises the government to conduct "regular, unannounced... inspections of all places of detention and confinement".
Human rights group Karapatan says on its website it has documented 12 enforced disappearances since Aquino became president in July 2010, with more than 200 recorded during the rule of his predecessor Gloria Arroyo.
President Benigno Aquino approved the legislation late Friday, spokeswoman Abigail Valte said, amid a growing outcry over the abductions.