“Karapatan reiterates its opposition on the bill lowering
the age of criminal responsibility as Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III
refiled it on Monday, July 1 despite strong condemnation from various groups
and individuals when it was filed in the 17th Congress,” Jose Mari Callueng,
Karapatan National Council member, said.
“Karapatan reiterates its opposition on the bill lowering
the age of criminal responsibility as Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III
refiled it on Monday, July 1 despite strong condemnation from various groups
and individuals when it was filed in the 17th Congress,” Jose Mari Callueng,
Karapatan National Council member, said.
Refiled as Senate Bill No. 5, it seeks to amend the existing
Republic Act No. 9344 or the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006. SB No. 5
will propose lowering the minimum age of criminal responsibility to “above 9
years old.”
“This move
exacerbates the already dangerous situation of Filipino children. The refiling
of the bill means that this government is hellbent on allowing Filipino
children to serve as a collateral damage in the government’s sham and
anti-people policies. This does not address the dire situation of children, nor
does it attempt to solve the socio-economic conditions at the root of the
problem. By being insistent on this bill, Sotto betrays his privileged position
which refuses to consider the plight of poor children who have been
disadvantaged because of their conditions,” said Callueng.
Karapatan emphasized that if the Duterte regime really wants
to put an end to crimes, then the government should focus in stopping the
operations of big time crime syndicates and their patrons in government, and in
addressing the socio-economic problems that Filipinos face. “Militarist policies
such as the reinstatement of death penalty and the proposal to lower the
minimum age of criminal responsibility have been repeatedly proven to be
ineffective in curbing criminality,” Callueng commented.
In previous statements, Karapatan criticized how the
proposed bill neglects the context that poverty and lack of work and education
opportunities as the main factors on offenses committed by children. According
to a study by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), at least 45% of the
offenses attributed to children are petty theft, robbery, and other offenses
against property, while 65% of minor offenders come from poor families.
“We strongly urge the Duterte government to perform its
mandate of providing quality and accessible opportunities to children. To lower
the minimum age of criminal responsibility is to inflict more harm and danger
to millions of Filipino children who will be at risk of being criminalized and
stigmatized for their entire life,” Callueng said.
Karapatan calls on various groups and the Filipino people to
stand in opposition against this new attempt to enact the lowered minimum age
of criminal responsibility and all other measures that can never truly address
the ills of society.