Short answer. Yes. Section 31 directs that the penalty be imposed in its maximum period when the perpetrator is an ascendant, parent, guardian, stepparent or collateral relative within the second degree of consanguinity or affinity. Closeness to the child aggravates the offence instead of mitigating it.
What the law says
The penalty provided herein shall be imposed in its maximum period when the perpetrator is an ascendant, parent guardian, stepparent or collateral relative within the second degree of consanguinity or affinity
RA 7610, Section 31 — Common Penal Provisions. Read the full provision →
What the law says
When the offender is a foreigner, he shall be deported immediately after service of sentence and forever barred from entry to the country
RA 7610, Section 31 — Common Penal Provisions. Read the full provision →
Who counts as a close relative here
The penalty provided herein shall be imposed in its maximum period when the perpetrator is an ascendant, parent guardian, stepparent or collateral relative within the second degree of consanguinity or affinity. Two details widen this beyond what most readers assume. Collateral relative within the second degree brings in siblings, and the phrase consanguinity or affinity means relation by marriage counts as well as by blood — so a step-parent and a sibling-in-law are within it. The same paragraph adds a manager or owner of an establishment operating without a licence, or on one that has expired or been revoked.
The other circumstances that push it to the maximum
Familial position is one of four. The penalty also goes to its maximum period where the offender has been previously convicted under the Act; where the offender is a corporation, partnership or association, in which case it falls on the officer or employee responsible for the violation; and where the offender is a public officer or employee. That last one carries a tail of its own: if the penalty imposed is reclusion perpetua or reclusion temporal, perpetual or temporary absolute disqualification is imposed as well, and if it is prision correccional or arresto mayor, the penalty of suspension is added.
What 'maximum period' does and does not mean
It is a sentencing instruction operating inside the range the particular offence already carries, not a promotion to a heavier penalty and not a separate crime. So the first question in any case is still which section of the Act was violated and what range it prescribes; Section 31 then fixes where within that range the sentence falls. The practical consequence is that the relationship must be alleged and established like any other circumstance affecting the penalty, which is why proof of filiation or of the marriage creating the affinity belongs in the case file from the start.
Common provisions, applying across the whole Act
These are headed common penal provisions, and the description is exact: they attach to violations throughout the statute — child trafficking, obscene publications and indecent shows, other acts of abuse — rather than to any single offence. Two further consequences sit in the same section. When the offender is a foreigner, he shall be deported immediately after service of sentence and forever barred from entry to the country. And a fine determined by the court is imposed and administered by the DSWD as a cash fund, disbursed for the rehabilitation of the child victim.
Related provisions
- RA 7610, Section 7 — Child Trafficking
- RA 7610, Section 9 — Obscene Publications And Shows
- RA 7610, Section 31 — Common Penal Provisions