PENALIZING THE ILLEGAL TRADING AND THE ILLEGAL EXPORTATION OF PHILIPPINE SUGAR.

• Number: Presidential Decree No. 659
• Sections: 8

Preamble

WHEREAS, the current worldwide shortage of sugar has brought

about an increased speculative interest in that essential commodity and

has induced rampant illegal trading and illegal exportation of

Philippine sugar;

WHEREAS, it is imperative, in order to stabilize the prices

of Philippine sugar exported abroad, and to safeguard our supply of

sugar for domestic consumption, that the Government should put an

immediate stop to this illegal trading and exportation of Philippine

sugar;

WHEREAS, there is no law at present specifically penalizing

the illegal trading and the illegal exportation of Philippine sugar and

it is essential and in the public interest that adequate deterrents

and/or penalties be provided therefor;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the

Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by the Constitution,

do hereby decree and order:

Section 1 Coverage of the Decree.

SECTION 1. Coverage of the Decree.—This Decree shall

apply to sugar in any form produced within the territorial jurisdiction

of the Republic of the Philippines.

Section 2 Acts Punishable.

SEC. 2. Acts Punishable.—The following acts shall

constitute illegal trading in or illegal exportation of Philippine

sugar, as the case may be:

The sale, transfer, or assignment of sugar by any planter,

producer, miller, central or refinery or any other person or entity

engaged in the production of sugar in the Philippines to any person

or entity other than the Philippine Exchange, Inc. and/or the

Philippine National Bank. In this case, each of the parties to the

transaction shall be liable and subject to the penalties herein

provided.

Loading or unloading sugar on board any vessel or aircraft at

points other than ports of entry or sub-ports of entry designated in or

pursuant to the Tariff and Customs Code of the Philippines.

Loading sugar on board any vessel or aircraft for shipment to

any point outside the jurisdiction of the Republic of the Philippines

without an authority to load from the Bureau of Customs, after securing

the corresponding export permits there for from the Sugar Quota

Administration and the Central Bank of the Philippines.

Loading sugar on board any vessel or aircraft for shipment to

any point within the jurisdiction of the Re public of the Philippines

without first furnishing the customs authorities at the port of

departure a Notification duly executed under oath and containing the

names and addresses of the shippers and the name, if any, type and

registry number of the vessel or aircraft, the exact quantity of sugar

to be shipped, and the port of destination: Provided, that it

shall be the ministerial duty of the customs authorities to stamp

and acknowledge receipt of such Notification, if duly accomplished,

upon presentation of the same; Provided, that: a copy of such

Notification, duly stamped as received by the customs authorities shall

be kept and produced by the shipper or carrier of such sugar upon

inspection by proper authorities in the course of shipment; and upon

arrival at the port of destination, such copy of the Notification must

have to be presented to the customs authorities thereat for inspection

of the shipment: Provided, further, that: Loading sugar in

excess by more than two hundred fifty kilos over the quantity stated

in the Notification shall, to the extent of such excess, likewise be

punishable under this paragraph.

Failure of the sugar shipment to arrive at the port of destination

within a reasonable time shall be considered prima facie evidence

of the illegal trading or illegal exportation of such sugar. A

disparity of more than two hundred fifty kilos between the quantity of

sugar stated in the Notification and the actual quantity of sugar

reaching the port of destination shall likewise be prima facie

evidence of the illegal trading in or the illegal exportation of sugar

to the extent of such disparity in quantity.

In the cases of the

offenses described in paragraphs (b), (c), and (d) above, both the

shipper of the sugar if he loads more than two hundred fifty kilos and

the captain or patron or pilot of the vessel or aircraft on which more

than two hundred fifty kilos of sugar is loaded shall be liable and be

subject to the penalties herein provided.

If the offense is

committed by a juridical person or entity, the officers thereof who

knowingly participated in the acts herein described shall be liable and

be subject to the penalties herein provided. If the offender is an

alien, he shall be deported after serving his sentence, without further

proceedings.

Section 3 Penalties.

SEC. 3. Penalties.—Persons found

guilty of violating the provisions of this Decree shall be punished as

follows:

Imprisonment of not less than six months nor more than two years

if the quantity of sugar involved is more than two hundred fifty kilos

but not more than ten thou sand kilos.

Imprisonment of not less than two years nor more than five years

if the sugar involved is more than ten thousand kilos but not more than

fifty thousand kilos.

Imprisonment of not less than five years nor more than ten years

if the sugar involved is more than fifty thousand kilos.

Section 4 Exceptions.

SEC. 4. Exceptions.—The loading of sugar on a vessel

or aircraft in an amount not exceeding two hundred fifty kilos for any

one vessel or aircraft without any of the permits, notifications or

other requirements mentioned in paragraphs (b), (c), and (d) of Section 2

hereof, shall not constitute an offense and shall not be punishable

hereunder. Likewise, the trading of sugar in violation of Sec. 2(a) of

this Decree, if done by small planters and/or millers producing less

than one thousand kilos of sugar per month, and provided the total

quantity traded by them each month does not exceed their actual

production for that month, shall not be punishable under this Decree. In

case of islands wherein there are no customs' authorities or which are

not sub-ports of entry, loading or unloading sugar thereon in excess of

two hundred fifty kilos may be allowed, but with proper Notification, as

provided in Sec. 2(d) of this Decree, submitted to the Commander of the

Philippine Constabulary in said area or his duly authorized

representative thereat.

Section 5 Confiscation of Sugar, Vessel or Aircraft.

SEC. 5. Confiscation of Sugar,

Vessel or Aircraft.—The sugar traded or loaded in violation of this

Decree shall be confiscated and surrendered to the nearest PNB or

Philippine Exchange, Inc. office for reallocation, without prejudice to

the rights of the parties involved, who shall be entitled to the return

of sugar of the same kind and quantity, should they be found later on by

the proper authorities to be innocent of the offenses herein defined.

The vessel or aircraft used in violation of the provisions hereof shall,

after final judgment by the court, be confiscated in favor of the

Government, thereafter to be disposed of in accordance with the

provisions of the Tariff and Customs Code.

Section 6

SEC. 6. All laws, executive orders, instructions, rules

and regulations inconsistent with these provisions are hereby repealed

or amended accordingly.

Section 7

SEC. 7. This Decree shall take effect immediately.

Done in the City of Manila, this 21st day of February, in the

year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and seventy-five.

(Sgd.)

FERDINAND E. MARCOS

President

Republic of the Philippines

By the President:

(Sgd.)

ALEJANDRO MELCHOR

Executive Secretary