Believe It or Not, the PH Anti-Rape Law Still Has a 'Forgiveness Clause'

(SPOT.ph) It’s 2026, but some of our national laws remain painfully stuck in the past. One such case is this: Under current Philippine law, marriage can still be used to legally erase criminal liability for rape.

If that loophole sounds crazy, that’s because it is. Under the Anti-Rape Law of 1997, Article 266-C outlines a provision titled “Effect of Pardon,” which states that marriage can allow offenders to walk away scot-free.

According to this rule, if a perpetrator marries their victim after the assault, that marriage “shall extinguish the criminal action or the penalty imposed.” In plain terms? The charge is dropped, any prison sentence is canceled, and the crime effectively ceases to exist in the eyes of the law. The same loophole applies to married couples. Under the same clause, if a legal husband rapes his wife, her subsequent “forgiveness” completely erases his criminal liability.

The loophole is widely referred to as the “forgiveness clause” or “marry your rapist” law, and in many parts of the world, it has already been shut down. In a report by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in 2021, the Philippines was named among the shrinking number of countries where a rapist can still avoid punishment by marrying the victim.

Also read: What Constitutes as Rape? No Penetration Necessary, Supreme Court Rules

Fortunately, some lawmakers are moving to strike down this archaic provision. Representatives Dadah Kiram Ismula, Chel Diokno, and Perci Cendaña of Akbayan, along with Dinagat Islands Representative Kaka Bag-ao, have officially filed House Bill 10099 to repeal Article 266-C.

“Rape is a grave crime. Marriage should never be used to shield the rapist from accountability and condemn the survivor to a lifetime of hell,” Ismula said in an official statement. “Nakakahiya na nasa batas pa rin natin ito. Panahon na para i-amend ang ating batas para sa dignidad ng mga victim survivors ng rape.”

While Article 266-C is the main target, the bill also seeks to amend Articles 23, 89, and 344 of the Revised Penal Code to ensure no hidden technicalities are left behind. This includes:

• Article 23 (Pardon by the Offended Party): Under general Philippine law, forgiving an offender does not stop the government from prosecuting them. However, Article 23 creates an explicit exception pointing to Article 344, allowing forgiveness to drop cases for specific sexual crimes.

• Article 89 (How Criminal Liability Is Totally Extinguished): This article lists the official ways a crime is wiped completely clean off the record, including death, completing a sentence, or receiving presidential amnesty. The current list explicitly includes “marriage of the offended woman,” effectively treating marriage as a legal remedy for a crime.

• Article 344 (Crimes Against Chastity): This old provision explicitly states that a victim’s marriage to their offender drops the criminal lawsuit or cancels the prison sentence in cases of rape and sexual offenses.

This isn't the first time lawmakers have tried to close the gap. In 2022, during the passage of RA 11648 (which raised the statutory rape age to 16), early House drafts included a provision repealing the forgiveness clause. However, it was dropped in the final version of the bill.

Later in 2023, 4Ps Party-list Representative JC Abalos II also filed House Bill 9083 to repeal Section 266-C and make rape a ground for marriage annulment. The measure stalled in committee and ultimately expired when the 19th Congress ended.

Also read: PH Has Developed Its Own Rape Kit and It Could Change How Cases Are Proven