PB supports amendment of Juvenile Welfare Act

CEBU, Philippines - The Cebu Provincial Board is supporting calls for Congress to revisit the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act especially the provision on the minimum age of criminal responsibility. The Board yesterday passed a resolution sponsored by Board Members Jude Thaddeus Durano Sybico and Peter John Calderon supporting the proposal now being made in the Senate and the House of Representatives.

Sybico has raised concern on Section 6 of the law which provides that “a child fifteen (15) years of age or under at the time of the commission of the offense shall be exempt from criminal liability” and that “a child above fifteen (15) years but below eighteen (18) years of age shall likewise be exempt from criminal liability unless he/she acted with discernment.”

“The resurgence of crimes principally committed by minors and the increasing police reports that crimes syndicates utilize and exploit minors to commit crimes or do the ‘dirty work’ for them due to the latter’s criminal exemption,” Sybico said.

He said that the call humbly made for both houses of Congress to review the said law is based not only on the grounds he mentioned but also on the common public knowledge that today’s generation of teenagers reach the psychological and emotional maturity earlier than what their biological age indicate.

Sybico said that they are aware that the issue of lowering the age of criminal liability has both pros and cons, merits and demerits, positive and negative aspects.

He further said that the Board made the appeal that thorough consultations among the relevant sectors of society must be conducted as part of the legislative process contemplated with regards to the proposal to amend R.A. 9344.

Deputy Speaker Pablo Garcia of the Second District of Cebu earlier expressed confidence that the law will be amended before the year ends.

Garcia filed House Bill 2894 seeking to rationalize the fixing of the minimum age of criminal liability. In his bill, Garcia categorized the children’s ages into Children at Risk, Children in Conflict with the Law and Youthful Offenders.

Children at Risk are those in the age group below 12 years old who should be totally exempted from criminal liability. 

Children in Conflict with the Law are those children in the age group of 12 to 15 years old who should be exempt from criminal liability unless acting with discernment.

Youthful Offenders are those above 15 but below 18 age group who will be facing criminal liabilities for specific cases like murder, parricide, homicide, kidnapping, rape, robbery, drug trafficking or other offenses punishable by more than 12 years in accordance with the provisions of Presidential Decree No. 603 or the Child and Youth Welfare Code.

Youthful offenders in these cases would be presume acting in discernment.- (THE FREEMAN)