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1. How do you protect the rights of an OFW who is accused

before a Singaporean court of a transnational crime of

tracking in person and smuggling of prohibited drugs?

Human tracking is the smuggling of humans for

seual eploitation! forced labor! and etraction of organs!

among others. "t abuses the rights of the persons tracked

as it encroaches on their right to free tra#el and mo#ementas well as eposes them to #arious risks due to their

economic needs. $he problem faced by the #ictims of human

tracking is the limited assistance a#ailable to them

attributed to their undocumented status. %ost of them ha#e

fake or tampered tra#el documents which would ultimately

result in the limitation of their freedom to come back to the

home country after disco#ery. Some of the #ictims were

recruited with the promise of a decent &ob! only to be

prostituted upon reaching the foreign country. $he problem isthat considering their status! they ha#e diculty in reporting

it to the authorities.

On the other hand! the smuggling of prohibited drugs

is when drug couriers or drug mules transport illegal drugs

transnationally in echange for a sum of money! the amount

of which depends on the #olume of drugs and the distance to

be tra#elled. 'arious ways of transporting illegal drugs

include concealment in luggage! clothing! and shoes!

ingesting! and to some etent! e#en undergoing minorsurgery.

(ue to the pre#alence of smuggling illegal drugs! the

go#ernment created the $ask Force (rug )ouriers which is an

interagency team tasked with the pre#ention and protection

of Filipinos #ictimi*ed to be drug couriers.

$he biggest problems faced by the go#ernment in

protecting Filipinos accused of drug smuggling are the

stringent policies of other countries as well as their +uickad&udication of cases in#ol#ing drug smuggling. "n )hina

alone! more than ,#e people ha#e been eecuted by their

go#ernment for drug smuggling. $he go#ernment has tried to

plead with )hina to ha#e their death sentences commuted to

life imprisonment in #ain.

"n general! the problems faced by the go#ernment

regarding human tracking and drug smuggling cannot be

dealt with unilaterally. $he laws of foreign countries must berespected in the same way that we would also want them to

gi#e our laws the same respect. $he solution lies with the

pre#ention of these cases through political will. )onsidering

the pre#alence of cases in certain countries such as )hina!

Singapore! and %iddle -ast countries! the go#ernment should

take a proacti#e stance and instigate bilateral talks as to how

such cases may be pre#ented and dealt with. o#ernments

and /Os in the source countries must aim to pre#ent the

departure of potential #ictims! while o#ernments and /Osin recei#ing countries must be willing to protect the #ictims

once they ha#e been sub&ected to dehumanising work and

physical #iolence. 0oth o#ernments must address the

problem of in#estigation and prosecution of oenders.

o#ernments should not interfere with the ad&udication of

&ustice in foreign countries. "t should! howe#er! pro#ide legal

and diplomatic assistance to #ictims whene#er possible.

o#ernments and /Os should cooperate with each other to

eradicate these crimes.

12. )an a male Filipino who went to $hailand and underwent

a se change be admitted back as a female e#en if his

passport shows that he is a male? Would his marriage to a

'ietnamese male be recogni*ed as #alid if it is #alid in

)alifornia where it was solemni*ed?

3ccording to 3rticle 45 of the Family )ode! 63ll

marriages solemni*ed outside the 7hilippines in accordancewith the laws in force in the country where they were

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solemni*ed! and #alid there are such! shall also be #alid in

this country! ecept those prohibited under 3rticles

89!85!8:!8; e >oci

)elebrationis! a marriage #alidly solemni*ed in another

country is also #alid in the 7hilippines pro#ided it is not

among those prohibited marriages. nder 3rticles 89@8;! #oid

marriages include those contracted by minors! without

authority of the solemni*ing ocer! bigamous or polygamous

marriages! contracted through mistake as to the identity of

the other! contracted by a party who was psychologically

incapacitated! incestuous marriages! and marriages #oid for

reasons of public policy. $he enumeration in the said articles

do not include same@se marriages. One would think that

said marriages would be considered.

Howe#er! the Supreme )ourt! in Sil#erio #s. Aepublic!

held that seual reassignment is no ground to change thename and se of a certain indi#idual. $he Family )ode! in its

paramount article! pro#ides that 6%arriage is a special

contract of permanent union between a man and a

woman...= "t therefore re+uires that the contracting parties

be male and female. $he )ourt further held in the Sil#erio

case that to grant the changes sought by petitioner would

alter the laws on marriage.

Here we see two conBicting theories which ha#e been

recogni*ed by both the &udiciary and the legislati#e. $he)ourt opined that the remedies asked by the petitioner in the

Sil#erio )ase in#ol#es +uestions of public policy. Senator

%iriam Santiago ,led S.0. 14;4 aiming to amend and clarify

3rticle 45 by epressly prohibiting same@se marriages.

3t this point! what is necessary is to amend the law.

$he legislature may either amend the Family )ode to

epressly prohibit same se marriages or amend it to do

away with the re+uirement of being male and female.

C. what legal arguments should the 7hilippines present and

before what forum to pro#e that the Dalayaan group of

islands belongs to our country?

$he Spratly "slands! nationally known as Dapuluan ng

Dalayaan! is a group of islands! reefs! atolls! and islets in the

South )hina Sea. "t is the sub&ect of conBicting claims by the

7hilippines! 'ietnam! %alaysia! )hina! and 0runei.

$he claim of the 7hilippines stems from the concept of

$erritorium /ullius and in consonance with the nited /ations

)on#ention on the >aw of the Sea E/)>OS.

"n 1C95! $omas )loma disco#ered the group of islands which

he called 6Dalayaan=. He obser#ed that it was uninhabited

and following the concept of Aes /ullius! claimed the group of

around 9G islands. 3lthough the )loma claim is not the ,rst

to assert legal title o#er the group of islands! this ignited thecountrys desire to ,ght for the ownership of the said islands.

$he go#ernment demanded $aipei to withdraw troops

stationed in one of the bigger islands. "n 1C:2! the 7hilippines

had already garrisoned ,#e of the islands within the group.

$hen@7resident %arcos issued 7( 19C5 which declared the

islands as part of the 7hilippine territory. Said decree stated

the following bases for the legal title o#er the group of

islands which areI E1 the area is part of the continental

margin of the 7hilippine archipelago! E4 the islands do not

belong to any state! but by reason of history! indispensable

need! and eecti#e occupation and control established in

accordance with international law! should not be deemed

sub&ect to the so#ereignty of the 7hilippines! and E8 claims

by other states o#er the area had lapsed by reason of

abandonment and cannot pre#ail o#er that of the 7hilippines

on legal! historical! and e+uitable grounds.

"n international law! conBicting claims to territory are

resol#ed through a determination of who has better title.3lthough uninhabited islands are not necessarily territorium

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nullius! they may be brought under eecti#e occupation by a

state. Occupation or physical possession must be eecti#e to

establish an acti#e claim o#er a certain territory.

$he )ontiguity or 7ropin+uity $heory