Short answer. Generally yes, but with an important qualifier. Article 14 makes Philippine penal laws binding on everyone who lives or sojourns in Philippine territory, but subjects that rule to the principles of public international law and to treaty stipulations — and diplomatic immunity is precisely one of those recognized international-law exceptions.
What the law says
Penal laws and those of public security and safety shall be obligatory upon all who live or sojourn in the Philippine territory, subject to the principles of public international law and to treaty stipulations.
Civil Code, Article 14 — Territoriality of Penal Laws. Read the full provision →
The general rule: penal laws bind everyone here
Article 14 states the ordinary rule of territoriality plainly: penal laws and those of public security and safety shall be obligatory upon all who live or sojourn in the Philippine territory. As a starting point, this covers anyone physically present in the country, citizen or foreigner, resident or visitor — Philippine criminal law does not exempt someone simply for being a foreign national.
The built-in exception for international law and treaties
The same article immediately qualifies that broad rule: it applies subject to the principles of public international law and to treaty stipulations. Article 14 does not pretend that Philippine penal law reaches absolutely everyone without exception — it expressly defers, in specific situations, to what public international law and the treaties the Philippines has entered into provide, rather than insisting that its own criminal jurisdiction always takes precedence over those international commitments.
Why a diplomat's position is different
Diplomatic immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the host state is a long-established principle of public international law, reflected in treaty arrangements the Philippines is party to, most notably the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. Because Article 14 itself subordinates the general territorial rule to public international law and treaty stipulations, a diplomat properly accredited to the Philippines can fall within that built-in exception rather than the general rule that binds ordinary residents and visitors.
What immunity does, and does not, mean
Diplomatic immunity generally shields a diplomat from being tried in the host country's courts — it is a jurisdictional protection, not a declaration that the underlying conduct was lawful. Whether immunity actually applies in a given case depends on the specific person's diplomatic status and the scope of the applicable treaty, and the sending state may respond in other ways, such as waiving immunity or recalling the diplomat, even where a Philippine prosecution itself cannot proceed.
Cases citing this provision
These Supreme Court decisions cite the provision above. We list them so you can read them yourself; the summaries of what each decided are not ours to give.
- Norma A. Del Socorro, for and in behalf of her minor child Roderigo Norjo Van Wilsem vs. Ernst Johan Brinkman Van Wilsem, G.R. No. 193707, December 10, 2014 — read the decision on LawPhil →