Republic
Act No. 10066 - An Act Providing for the Protection and Conservation of the
National Cultural Heritage, Strengthening the National Commission for Culture
and the Arts (NCCA) and its Affiliated Cultural Agencies and for Other
Purposes
Photo: https://elibrary.bmb.gov.ph/elibrary/books/national-cultural-heritage-act-of-2009-republic-act-no-10066/
Salient Features
SEC. 3. Definition of Terms. — For purposes of this Act, the following terms shall be defined as follows:
(a) “Adaptive reuse” shall refer to the utilization of buildings, other built-structures and sites of value for purposes other than that for which they were intended originally, in order to conserve the site, their engineering integrity and authenticity of design.
(b) “Anthropological area” shall refer to any place where studies of specific ethno-linguistic groups are undertaken, the properties of which are of value to our cultural heritage.
(c) “Antique” shall refer to a cultural property found locally which is one hundred (100) years in age, more or less, the production of which has ceased.
(d) “Archaeological area” shall refer to any place, whether above or under ground, underwater or at sea level, containing fossils, artifacts and other cultural, geological, botanical, zoological materials which depict and document culturally relevant paleontological, prehistoric and/or historic events.
(e) “Archives” shall refer to public and private records in any format which have been selected for permanent preservation because of their evidential, historical informational value; otherwise known as archival materials collections or archival holdings; the place (building/room/storage area) where archival materials are kept and preserved; and an organization or agency or part thereof whose main responsibility is to appraise, arrange, describe, conserve, promote and make archival materials available for reference and research, also known as archival agency.
(f) “Built heritage” shall refer to architectural and engineering structures such as, but not limited to, bridges, government buildings, houses of ancestry, traditional dwellings, quartels, train stations, lighthouses, small ports, educational, technological and industrial complexes, and their settings, and landscapes with notable historical and cultural significance.
(g) “Collector” shall refer to any person who or institution that acquires cultural property for purposes other than sale.
(h) “Commission” shall refer to the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA).
(i) “Conservation” shall refer to all the processes and measures of maintaining the cultural significance of a cultural property including, but not limited to, preservation, restoration, reconstruction, protection, adaptation or any combination thereof.
(j) “Cultural agencies” shall refer to the following national government agencies with their specific areas of responsibility: National Museum (cultural property); the National Library (books); National Historical Institute (Philippine history); National Archives (documents); Cultural Center of the Philippines (culture and the arts); and Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino (language).
(k) “Cultural education” shall refer to the teaching and learning of cultural concepts and processes.
(l) “Cultural heritage” shall refer to the totality of cultural property preserved and developed through time and passed on to posterity.
(m) “Cultural heritage worker” shall refer to an individual undertaking cultural heritage work.
(n) “Cultural institution” shall refer to entities engaged primarily in cultural work.
(o) “Cultural property” shall refer to all products of human creativity by which a people and a nation reveal their identity, including churches, mosques and other places of religious worship, schools and natural history specimens and sites, whether public or privately-owned, movable or immovable, and tangible or intangible.
(p) “Dealers” shall refer to natural or juridical persons who acquire cultural property for the purpose of engaging in the acquisition and disposition of the same.
(q) “Heritage zone” shall refer to historical, anthropological, archaeological, artistic geographical areas and settings that are culturally significant to the country, as declared by the National Museum and/or the National Historical Institute.
(r) “History” shall refer to a written record of past events relating to Philippine history.
(s) “Historical landmarks” shall refer to sites or structures that are associated with events or achievements significant to Philippine history as declared by the National Historical Institute.
(t) “Historical monuments” shall refer to structures that honor illustrious persons or commemorate events of historical value as declared by the National Historical Institute.
(u) “Historical shrines” shall refer to historical sites or structures hallowed and revered for their history or association as declared by the National Historical Institute.
(v) “Historical street name” shall refer to a street name which has been in existence for at least fifty (50) years and over time has been considered historic.
(w) “Important cultural property” shall refer to a cultural property having exceptional cultural, artistic and historical significance to the Philippines, as shall be determined by the National Museum and/or National Historical Institute.
(x) “Intangible cultural heritage” shall refer to the practices, representations, expressions, knowledge and skills, as well as the instruments, objects and artifacts associated therewith, that communities, groups and individuals recognize as part of their cultural heritage, such as: (1) oral traditions, languages and expressions; (2) performing arts; (3) social practices, rituals and festive events; (4) knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe; and (5) traditional craftsmanship.
(y) “Intangible cultural property” shall refer to the peoples’ learned processes along with the knowledge, skills and creativity that inform and are developed by them, the products they create and the resources, spaces and other aspects of social and natural context necessary for their sustainability.
(z) “Library” shall refer to an institution where the collection of books, manuscripts, computerized information and other materials are organized to provide physical, bibliographic and/or intellectual access to the public, with a librarian that is trained to provide services and programs related to the information needs of its clientele.
(aa) “Museum” shall refer to a permanent institution that researches, acquires, conserves, communicates and exhibits the material evidence of humans and their environment for purposes of education or leisure.
(bb) “National cultural treasure” shall refer to a unique cultural property found locally, possessing outstanding historical, cultural, artistic and/or scientific value which is highly significant and important to the country and nation, and officially declared as such by pertinent cultural agency.
(cc) “Nationally significant” shall refer to historical, aesthetic, scientific, technical, social and/or spiritual values that unify the nation by a deep sense of pride in their various yet common identities, cultural heritage and national patrimony.
(dd) “Natural property of cultural significance” shall refer to areas possessing outstanding ecosystem with flora and fauna of national scientific importance under the National Integrated Protected Areas System.
(ee) “NCCA Portal Cultural Databank” refers to the specific domain in the Commission’s intranet for cultural information that is accessed only internally with control and confidentiality. It includes the registry of national cultural property.
(ff) “Prehistory” shall refer to the period of human history before the introduction of the forms of writing.
(gg) “Registry” shall refer to the Philippine Registry of Cultural Property which is the registry of all cultural property of the country deemed of significant importance to our cultural heritage.
(hh) “Restoration” shall refer to the action taken or the technical intervention to correct deterioration and alterations.
(ii) “Tangible cultural property” shall refer to a cultural property with historical, archival, anthropological, archaeological, artistic and architectural value, and with exceptional or traditional production, whether of Philippine origin or not, including antiques and natural history specimens with significant value.
Sec. 5. Cultural Property Considered
Important Cultural Property. - For purposes of protecting a cultural property
against exportation, modification or demolition, the following works shall be
considered important cultural property, unless declared otherwise by the
pertinent cultural agency:
Unless declared by the Commission,
(a) Works by a Manlilikha ng Bayan;
(b) Works by a National Artist;
Unless declared by the National Museum,
(c) Archaeological and traditional
ethnographic materials;
Unless declared by the National Historical
Institute,
(d) Works of national heroes;
(e) Marked structure;
(f) Structures dating at least fifty (50)
years old; and
Unless declared by the National Archives,
(g) Archival material/document dating at
least (50) years old.
The property owner may petition the
appropriate cultural agency to remove the presumption of important cultural
property which shall not be unreasonably withheld.
Sec. 7. Privileges for Cultural Property.
- All cultural properties declared as national cultural treasures and national
historical landmarks, sites or monuments shall be entitled to the following
privileges.
(a)
Priority government funding for protection, conservation and restoration;
(b) Incentive for private support of
conservation and restoration through Commission's Conservation Incentive
Program for national cultural treasures;
(c) An official heritage marker placed by
the cultural agency concerned indicating that the immovable cultural property
has been identified as national cultural treasures and/or national historical
landmarks, sites or monuments; and
(d) In times of armed conflict, natural
disasters and other exceptional events that endanger the cultural heritage of
the country, all national cultural treasures or national historical landmarks,
sites or monuments shall be given priority protection by the government.
All cultural properties declared as
important cultural property may also receive government funding for its
protection, conservation and restoration. An official heritage marker shall
likewise be placed on an immovable cultural property to identify the same as important
cultural property.
Sec. 12. Designation of Heritage Zones. -
The National Historical Institute and the National Museum, in consultation with
the Commission and the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board or other concerned
agencies, shall designate heritage zones to protect the historical and cultural
integrity of a geographical area.
Sec. 13. Maintenance of Heritage Zones. -
A heritage zone shall be maintained by the local government unit concerned, in
accordance with the following guidelines:
(a) Implementation of adaptive reuse of
cultural property;
(b) Appearance of streets, parks,
monuments, buildings, and natural bodies of water, canals, paths and barangays
within a locality shall be maintained as close to their appearance at the time
the area was of most importance to Philippine history as determined by the
National Historical Institute; and
(c) Local government units shall document
and sustain all sociocultural practices such as, but not limited to,
traditional celebrations, historical battles, recreation of customs, and the
reenactment of battles and other local customs that are unique to the locality.
Sec. 22. Renaming of Historical Streets,
Buildings Designated as Cultural Treasure or Important Cultural Property. - The
names of historical streets, parks, buildings, shrines, landmarks, monuments
and sites designated as national cultural treasures or important cultural
property shall not be allowed to be renamed by local or national legislation,
unless approved by the National Historical Institute, and only after due
hearing on the matter. Furthermore, for changes of names done to historical
streets, parks, buildings, shrines, landmarks, monuments, and sites prior to
the effectivity of this Act, the National Historical Institute may direct the
local government units to restore their original names, also after due hearing.
Sec. 35. Tax Exemptions on Donations. -
All donations in any form to the Commission and its affiliated cultural
agencies shall be exmpt from donor's tax and the same shall be considered as
allowable deduction from the gross income in the computation of the income tax
of the donor, in accordance with the provisions of the National Internal
Revenue Code of 1997, as amended.
Sec. 38. Incorporation of National
Cultural Treasures and Important Cultural Property in the Basic Education
System. - Within one (1) year from the effectivity of this Act, the Department
of Education, in coordination with the Commission's Philippine Cultural
Education Program, shall formulate the cultural heritage education programs
both for local and overseas Filipinos to be incorporated into the formal,
alternative and informal education, with emphasis on the protection,
conservation and preservation of cultural heritage property.
The Philippine Registry of Cultural
Heritage Property shall likewise be incorporated into the formal, alternative
and informal education by the provincial and local governments.
Sec. 42. Creation of Sentro Rizal. - There
is hereby created and established a Sentro Rizal whose main purpose is the
promotion of Philippine arts, culture and language throughout the world.
Sec. 43. Overseas Branches or Offices of
Sentro Rizal. - Sentro Rizal shall have branches or offices in countries where
there are children of overseas Filipino workers who need to be educated about
their roots, as well as developed countries where there are large Filipino communities.
Sec. 45. Services Offered. - The Sentro
Rizal shall offer Filipino language courses for children and adults, as well as
exhibits, small concerts, poetry reading, Philippine cuisine lessons in all
Sentro Rizal branches.
