Voting 16-0, the Senate on Wednesday concurred in the ratification of the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT).
Sixteen senators voted yes, there were no negative votes but six of them abstained during the voting on the approval on third reading of Senate Resolution No. 960.
The Philippines adopted the ATT on April 2, 2013 at the United Nations (UN) Assembly. So far, there are 110 state parties to the treaty.
There are 31 states that have also signed but have not yet ratified the treaty.
The ATT underlines the need to prevent and eradicate the illicit trade in conventional arms and to prevent their diversion to the illicit market.
Under the 1987 Constitution, the concurrence by at least two-thirds of the 24-member Senate is needed before any international agreement that the Philippines signs becomes binding.
The ATT also affirms the sovereign rights of any country to regulate and control conventional arms exclusively within its territory pursuant to its own legal or constitutional system.
Senators who abtained in the voting are Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri, Senators Grace Poe, Christopher “Bong” Go, Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa, Francis Tolentino, and Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto.