Bicam takes up amendment to Juvenile Justice law

MANILA, Philippines - The bill providing just and proficient parameters in the treatment of children in conflict with the law, or youth offenders who acted with discernment, is being finalized by a Senate-House conference panel before ratification by both chambers.

House Bill 6052 and Senate Bill 3324 seek to strengthen the Juvenile Justice System in the country, amending Republic Act 9344 or the “Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006.”

HB 6052 is in substitution of six separate but related measures consolidated and sponsored in plenary by the Committee on Revision of Laws chaired by Rep. Marlyn L. Primicias-Agabas (6th District, Pangasinan).

“We are hoping that the bicameral conference panel would, before adjournment of the 15th Congress in June, be able to reconcile conflicting provisions of the proposed statute, special provisions related to the covered age-range of youthful offenders,” the authors said.

Under the House measure, the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Council, which is currently attached to the Department of Justice, shall, upon enactment of the measure, be attached to the Department of Social Welfare and Development and placed under the latter’s administrative supervision.

The JJVVC is also mandated, among others, to conduct every three years a study on the age of discernment of Filipino children, which shall be the basis for legislative review of the minimum age of criminal responsibility.

HB 6052 defines a youthful offender as a child above 12 but at least 15 years of age who acted with discernment and a child above 15 years old but under 18 years of age at the time of the alleged commission of a criminal offense.

The House measure also suspends the sentence of a child 12 years of age or under and a child above 12 years old but at least 15 years of age who acted with discernment and was found guilty of an offense, but mandates that the child be committed to a repository institution or to the custody of the DSWD or any duly licensed agency.

However, the authors said that if the child failed to comply with the conditions of the repository institutions mentioned, the child would be returned to the committing court for the imposition of the penalty upon reaching 18 years of age.

Furthermore, they saidl that if the offense charged is murder, parricide, homicide, kidnapping, rape, robbery, drug trafficking or other offenses punishable by more than 12 years, such child shall be presumed to have acted with discernment.

The are 23 authors of the bill, including the late Rep. Salvador Escudero III (1st Dist., Sorsogon).