MANILA, Philippines - Justice Secretary Leila De Lima has expressed opposition to proposals on lowering the age of criminal responsibility from 15 years old to 9 years old.
In a message delivered at a joint Department of Justice (DOJ), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) media forum in Quezon City with the theme "Understanding the Children in Conflict with the Law," De Lima stressed that the recent spate of crimes involving minor offenders should not be used to justify proposed amendments on the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006.
"If the criminal syndicates are considered the problem, neither lowering the age nor putting children in jail is the solution. Arresting and putting children to prison is easier than cracking a whip at a syndicate. It is faster than providing programs and infrastructure to prevent them from offending. But it will not address the causes of offending," she said.
"Lowering the age will violate the very essence of justice if children who have been exploited by criminal syndicates are penalized instead of the adults who had exploited them," she added.
De Lima said it is government's responsibility to pursue and put the adult criminal syndicates behind minor offenders to jail.
There are moves to lower the age of criminal responsibility due to the recent arrests of children in conflict with the law involving incidents such as robbery and rape. The suspects in these crimes were arrested but were turned over to the DSWD because they cannot be prosecuted.
Under the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act or Republic Act(RA) No. 9344, a child 15 years old or below at the time of the commission of the offense shall be exempt from criminal liability and only subjected to an intervention program.
Child offenders are victims, too
De Lima said the community, especially parents, schools, and mass media have a major role to play in helping children stay out of crimes.
"These children are victims of circumstances beyond their control, of chronic poverty and alarming culture of violence rampant in a child's home, school and community. Hence, children should be treated as individuals with problems who need help and need to be provided with appropriate assistance and services, to ensure the full protection of their rights to survival, protection, development and participation," she said.
The justice chief particularly highlighted the role of mass media in preventing juvenile delinquency. She also called on media practitioners to maintain the highest standards in reporting about minor offenders.
"I urge the media practitioners to maintain the highest critical and professional standards when reporting cases on children in conflict with the law. I urge them to provide a balanced and evidence based reports about children so that they are not subjected to inappropriate and sensationalized publicity."
And while she disagrees with moves to lower the age of criminal responsibility of children in conflict with the law, De Lima said minor offenders should still not be completely free of accountability, only that a "different or special justice system for them is prescribed by law."
"The Juvenile Justice System will still hold them accountable through child appropriate procedures that will see through their atonement.
"Within the framework of restorative justice, RA 9344 provides that children exempt from criminal responsibility shall undergo appropriate intervention programs, designed in consideration of several factors such as circumstances of the child, the needs of the child, the influence of the family and environment on the grown of the child, and the ability and willingness of the parents/guardians to guide and supervise the child," De Lima said.
De Lima called on the public, especially since October is National Children's Month, to "take on his and her duty to promote children's rights and support the law.
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