Unlawful Violations of Martial Law Orders

Any violation of General Orders No. 6 and General Orders No. 7 is unlawful.
Upon conviction, the violator faces penalties imposed by a military court/tribunal/commission that may direct the specific penalty within the decree’s ranges or mandatory terms.
The mandatory death penalty applies where the violation involves an unlicensed firearm and either:
- is attended by assault upon, or resistance to persons in authority or their agents in the performance of official functions resulting in death to said persons in authority or their agents; or
- uses such unlicensed firearm in the commission of crimes against persons, property, or chastity causing the death of the victim; or
- uses such unlicensed firearm in violation of any other General Orders and/or Letters of Instructions promulgated under Proclamation No. 1081.
Where the mandatory death conditions do not apply, the penalty is imprisonment ranging from twenty years up to life imprisonment as the military court/tribunal/commission may direct.

The decree makes corporate responsibility criminally actionable: the penalty provided for violations of General Orders No. 6 and General Orders No. 7 shall be imposed upon specified persons who willfully or knowingly allow firearms owned by their firm or entity to be used in violation of those orders.
This officer/board liability applies to the owner, president, manager, members of the board of directors, or other responsible officers of any public or private firms, companies, corporations, or entities.
Liability attaches specifically when the firearms owned by the firm, company, corporation, or entity concerned are allowed to be used in violation of General Orders No. 6 and General Orders No. 7.

The decree makes it unlawful to possess deadly weapons, including hand-grenades, rifles grenades, and other explosives, including devices such as “pill box bombs,” “molotov cocktail bombs,” “fire bombs,” or other incendiary devices.
The decree defines incendiary devices broadly as any chemical, chemical compound, or detonating agent containing combustible units or ingredients in such proportion, quantity, packing, or bottling that it ignites by fire, friction, concussion, percussion, or detonation and produces destructive effects or causes injury or death.
Any person convicted of unlawful possession of such deadly weapons is punished by imprisonment ranging from ten to fifteen years as the military court/tribunal/commission may direct.

The decree makes it unlawful to carry outside of residence any bladed, pointed, or blunt weapon such as “fanknife,” “spear,” “dagger,” “bolo,” “balisong,” “barong,” “kris,” or club.”
The decree allows an exception where the articles are being used as necessary tools or implements to earn a livelihood and are used in connection therewith.
Any person found guilty of unlawful carrying under the general prohibition is punished by imprisonment ranging from five to ten years as the military court/tribunal/commission may direct.

When the offense penalized in the provisions on the prohibited possession of deadly weapons (Paragraphs 2) and prohibited carrying of bladed or blunt weapons (Paragraph 3) is committed:
- during the commission of any other crime, or
- for the purpose of committing any other crime,
  then the penalty is imposed in its maximum extent.
In addition to the penalty for the offense penalized under those provisions, the offender also receives the penalty provided for the particular offenses committed or intended to be committed.

Penalties in all covered offenses are imposed by a military court/tribunal/commission that directs the applicable penalty within the decree’s mandatory and range-based terms.
The decree is formally completed in the City of Manila on October 2, 1972, signed by Ferdinand E. Marcos.