Human rights groups slammed the Department of Justice (DOJ) for pushing for a law against what it described as ‘nihilistic violent extremism,’ although there are enough laws against pointless violence.
‘They have not even determined whether there are systematic actions or groups behind those kinds of crimes, so the DOJ must immediately withdraw those kinds of proposals,’ Cristina Palabay, secretary general of Karapatan, told the Inquirer.
‘The fact that the DOJ is considering crimes that happened in school in the purview or ambit of terrorism means that there is something wrong,’ Palabay said in an interview.
DOJ Undersecretary Nicholas Ty, in a press briefing last week, said a law against ‘nihilistic violent extremism’ should be prioritized in the wake of the school shooting by minors in Tacloban City that led to the killing of their three fellow students, as well as the stabbing incidents in Cavite involving minors as well.
Ty was referring to multiple school stabbing incidents at the Bethel Academy in General Trias City on June 16, Cavite National High School in Cavite City on June 19 and Emilia Poblete Integrated High School in Silang on June 26.
Enough laws
The DOJ official conceded that there were other laws to investigate and prosecute such cases, but he insisted ‘it would be better if there was a law that we can use that particularly addresses the problem.’
But even in the United States, where the idea of ‘nihilistic violent extremism’ originated, such acts are prosecuted under regular and juvenile criminal laws.
There is no federal law or state statute against nihilistic violent extremism. The term was used by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation and other law enforcement agencies as an analytic classification and investigative term.
The FBI first used the term in federal court documents in March 2025 regarding the case of Nikita Casap, an 18-year-old who murdered his mother, Tatiana Casap and stepfather, Donald Mayer. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in March.
All is meaningless
The FBI, however, later used the term in investigations involving groups like 764 and No Lives Matter.
The FBI defines ‘nihilistic violent extremism’ as individuals engaging in criminal conduct ‘in furtherance of political, social, or religious goals that derive primarily from a hatred of society at large and a desire to bring about its collapse.’
Researchers, however, warn that the term should not be used as a blanket label because it might obscure other ideological influences, such as white supremacy or far-right extremism, which may still play a significant role in an attacker’s motivation
But Ty insisted that nihilistic violent extremism or pointless violence ‘could’ spark from committing minor crimes to felonies.
‘It can escalate to acts like self-mutilation or harming animals and pets, eventually reaching the point of a mass casualty event. And when this happens, the internet is used to exploiting and victimizing vulnerable youth, preying on their vulnerabilities and their need for companionship,’ he theorized.