REPUBLIC ACT No. 10072
AN ACT RECOGNIZING THE PHILIPPINE NATIONAL RED CROSS AS AN INDEPENDENT,
AUTONOMOUS, NON–GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION AUXILIARY TO THE AUTHORITIES OF THE
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES IN THE HUMANITARIAN FIELD, TO BE KNOWN AS THE PHILIPPINE
RED CROSS
Section 1
Short Title
This
Act shall be known as the "Philippine Red Cross Act of 2009"
Section 2
Declaration of Principles
and State Policies
Pursuant
to Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution which provides for the adoption of
the generally accepted principles of international law as part of the law of
the land, the State shall at all times act in conformity with the Geneva
Conventions of 1949 and their additional protocols, and the Statutes of the
International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, and shall establish and
promote the development of a duly recognized independent and autonomous
nongovernmental Red Cross Society that shall provide humanitarian relief and
assistance in times of peace and armed conflict. The State shall at all times
respect the adherence by the Red Cross Society to the fundamental principles of
humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity and
universality.
Section 3
Philippine Red Cross
The
Philippine Red Cross shall be recognized as the voluntary, independent and
autonomous non–governmental society auxiliary to the authorities of the
Republic of the Philippines in the humanitarian field, to assist said
authorities in discharging the obligations set forth in the Geneva Conventions
and the Statutes of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.
Pursuant to the fundamental principle of unity, the Philippine Red Cross shall
be the only national society of the Red Cross in the Republic of the Philippines
and be directed by a central body, and shall perform the duties inherent upon
such status over the entire Philippine territory.
Section 4
Purposes
The
purposes of the Philippine Red Cross shall be as follows:
(a) To cooperate with public
authorities in the prevention of disease, the promotion of health and the
mitigation of human suffering by their own programs in such fields as
education, health and social welfare, for the benefit of the community;
(b) To organize, in liaison with
public authorities, emergency relief operations and other services to assist
the sick and wounded of armed forces in time of armed conflict, in accordance
with the spirit of and under the conditions prescribed by the Geneva
Conventions to which the Republic of the Philippines proclaimed its adherence;
(c) For the purposes mentioned
in the preceding paragraphs, to perform all duties devolving upon the
Philippine Red Cross as a result of the adherence of the Republic of the
Philippines to the said Convention;
(d) To act in matters of voluntary
relief and of communication between the people of the Republic of the
Philippines and their Armed Forces, in time of peace and in time of armed
conflict, and to act in such matters between similar national societies of
other countries and the Governments and people and the Armed Forces of the
Republic of the Philippines;
(e) To establish and maintain a
system of national and international relief in time of peace and in time of
armed conflict and apply the same in meeting emergency needs caused by typhoons,
floods, fires, earthquakes, and other natural or man-made disasters, and to
devise and carry on measures for alleviating the suffering caused by such
disasters;
(f) To devise and promote such
other services in time of peace and in time of armed conflict as may be found
desirable in improving the health, safety and welfare of the Filipino people,
and of all peoples in general; and
(g) To devise such means as to
make every citizen and/or resident of the Philippines a member of the
Philippine Red Cross.
Section 5
Privileges
To
allow it to fully realize its mandate under the Geneva Conventions, the
Statutes of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and this Act,
the Philippine Red Cross shall:
(a) Enter into agreements with
public authorities, and accept provisions for the cost of any service or
activity which may be entrusted to it, within the scope of its object and
functions, pursuant to such agreements;
(b) Own and hold real and
personal properties and accept bequests, donations and contributions of property
of all classes;
(c) Be exempt from payment of
all direct and indirect taxes, all provisions of law to the contrary
notwithstanding, including value-added tax (VAT), fees and other charges of all
kinds on all income from its operations, including the use, lease or sale of
its real property, and provision of services. The Philippine Red Cross shall
also be exempt from direct and indirect taxes, including VAT, duties, fees and
other charges on importations and purchases for its exclusive use.
Likewise, all donations, legacies and gifts made to
the Philippine Red Cross to support its purposes and objectives shall be exempt
from the donor's tax and shall be deductible from the gross income of the donor
for income tax purposes or from the computation of the donor-decedent's net
estate as a transfer for public use for estate tax purposes.
Finally, the Philippine Red Cross shall be exempt
from the payment of real property taxes on all real properties owned by it; and
(d) Be allotted by the
Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office at least one (1) lottery draw yearly for
the support of its disaster relief operations in addition to its existing
lottery draws for the Blood Program.
Section 6
Membership
Membership
in the Philippine Red Cross shall be open to the entire population in the
Philippines regardless of citizenship. Any contribution to the Philippine Red
Cross Annual Fund Campaign shall entitle the contributor to membership for one
(1) year and the said contribution shall be deductible in full for taxation
purposes.
Section 7
Central Body
Pursuant
to its obligations under the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their additional
protocols, as well as the Statutes of the International Red Cross and Red
Crescent Movement, the State recognizes the following:
(a) The central body of the
Philippine Red Cross as the Board of Governors, composed of thirty (30)
members, six (6) of whom shall be appointed by the President of the
Philippines, eighteen (18) elected by chapter delegates in biennial
conventions, and the remaining six (6) elected by the twenty-four (24) members
of the Board already chosen.
(1)
The term of office of all members of the Board of Governors shall be
four (4) years, including those appointed by the President of the Philippines,
renewable at the pleasure of the appointing power or elective bodies.
(2)
Vacancies in the Board of Governors caused by death or resignation
shall be filled by election by the Board of Governors at its next meeting,
except that vacancies among the presidential appointees shall be filled by the
President. (b) The President of the Philippines shall be the Honorary President
of the Philippine Red Cross, and the officers shall consist of a Chairman, Vice
Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, Counselor, Assistant Secretary and an Assistant
Treasurer, all of whom shall be elected by the Board of Governors from among
its membership for a term of two (2) years and may be re-elected. The election
of officers shall take place within sixty (60) days after all the members of
the Board of Governors have been chosen and have qualified.
(b) The biennial meeting of
chapter delegates shall be held on such date and place as may be specified by
the Board of Governors to elect its members and advise them on the activities
of the Philippine Red Cross: Provided, however, That during periods of great
emergency, the Board of Governors in its discretion may determine that the best
interest of the Philippine Red Cross shall be served by postponing such
biennial meeting.
(c) The power to ordain, adopt
and amend bylaws, as well as its rules and regulations, including those
governing its chapters, shall be vested in the Board of Governors.
(d) The members of the Board of
Governors, as well as the officers, shall serve without compensation. The
compensation of the paid staff of the Philippine Red Cross shall be determined
by the Board of Governors upon the recommendation of the Secretary General.
(e) As a national voluntary
society, the Philippine Red Cross shall be financed primarily by contributions
obtained through solicitation campaigns throughout the year which shall be
organized by the Board of Governors and conducted by the chapters in their
respective jurisdictions. These fundraising campaigns shall be conducted
independently of other fund drives and service needs.
(f) The Board of Governors shall
promulgate rules and regulations for the chapters of the Philippine Red Cross.
Said rules and regulations shall conform to the bylaws and rules and
regulations created under Section 7 of this Act, and fix the relationship of
the chapters to the Philippine Red Cross, define their territorial
jurisdictions, and determine the number of delegates for each based on
population, fund campaign potentials and service needs. This shall include the
organization of Councils in all public schools and universities to promote
civic consciousness among the youth. Participation in the Philippine Red Cross
as part of the National Service Training Program for tertiary level students
shall also be promoted.
(g) The Philippine Red Cross
shall, at the end of every calendar year, submit to the President of the
Philippines an annual report containing its activities and showing its
financial condition.
Section 8
Unlawful Solicitation
It
shall be unlawful for any person to solicit, collect or receive money, materials
or property of any kind by falsely representing himself to be a member, agent
or representative of the Philippine Red Cross.
Section 9
Red Cross Name and Emblem
The
use of the name Red Cross is reserved exclusively to the Philippine Red Cross
and the use of the emblem of the Red Greek Cross on a white ground is reserved
exclusively to the Philippine Red Cross, medical services of the Armed Forces
of the Philippines and such other medical facilities or other institutions as
may be authorized by the Philippine Red Cross as provided under Article 44 of
the Geneva Conventions. It shall be unlawful for any other person or entity to
use the words red cross or Geneva Cross or to use the emblem of the Red Greek
Cross on a white ground or any designation, sign or insignia constituting an
imitation thereof for any purpose whatsoever.
Section 10
Penal Clause
Any person, whether natural or juridical,
violating any section of this Act shall, upon conviction therefore, be liable
to a fine of not less than Fifty thousand pesos (P50,000.00) or imprisonment
for a term not exceeding one (1) year, or both, at the discretion of the court
for each and every violation. In case the violation is committed by a
corporation or an association, the penalty shall devolve upon the president,
director or any other officer responsible for such violation.
Section 11
Repealing Clause
Republic
Act No. 95, as amended, is hereby repealed. All other laws or parts thereof,
decrees, orders, rules and regulations inconsistent with the provisions of this
Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.
Section 12
Separability Clause
If
any provision of this Act is declared invalid, the remainder of this Act or any
provision not affected thereby shall remain in full force and effect.
Section 13
Effectivity
This
Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days following its publication in the
Official Gazette or in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation.
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