LOWERING MACR

On House Bill 8858 which is lowering the minimum age of criminal responsibility from 15 years old to 9 or 12, I am against on it not because I am just merely sustaining my antagonism but because I don’t support of what I don’t believe.  In HB-8858, “all children ages 9 years old below are absolutely exempted from criminal responsibility.  This bill covers the 9 years old and 1 day and more.  Any children more than 9 years old but below 18 years old will be exempted from criminal liability, will undergo rehabilitation and confinement in Bahay Pag-Asa or in agricultural camp or training center, or be subjected to intervention program unless the child has acted with discernment.  Meaning to say, just in case they fully understood the right from wrong that they understand they really made crime”.  First of all, these are exactly the ages that they should be under the custody of their parents.  It is parenting issue, it is all-parents custodianship for children in elementary ages.  If it can’t discipline, there is DSWD to mediate.  That intervention program is a nice plan but how to implement this beautiful plan if the existing Republic Act 9344 or the “Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act” was never able supported to execute well.  Enhance the juvenile justice, this is what needs to fix.  The purpose of HB-8858 is good which is to help the children not to grow into criminal and not to become future plague of the society.  But it doesn’t need to create new law if the purpose is the same with the current law – just enhance R.A. 9344.

“HB-8858 is limited to specific crimes like murder, homicide, parricide, infanticide, violation of dangerous drugs act, rape, carnapping and kidnapping”.  These crimes are really not fault of the children instead they are the victims in these crimes.  Yes, in reality there are children breaking the laws, committing crimes like rape, drugs, robbery and even murder. But these children are victims: victims of government’s failure to battle syndicates and criminality, victims of state’s negligence to provide their needs to become good citizen, and victims of their family’s irresponsibility to raise them into good children.  They are vulnerable to resist and to control the situation. They are easy to threaten and they’re so weak to fight when harassed.  A 12 or 9 year old child knows it is wrong to rape, rob, and murder but these ages, through their young mind do not know how to figure out the wider consequences of their misdeed, incapable to understand the corresponding responsibilities of guilty, and cannot see the bigger picture and plan the long-run life’s perspective after doing these misdeeds.  I doubt a child knows how the guilt will hound him in the long run and longer period. I doubt if his views and opinion are deep enough to cope up with the stigma of a convict inflicted by our society. Children do not know these simply because they are children.  Because ages like these have yet to fully mature psychologically and emotionally enough to be able to totally discern the impact of misdeed in the long-run. Their lack of experiences in life unable them to understand how does it feel to become convict, unable them to realize the future impact on his career, social life, relationship, character and choice of interest.  A child to be able to rape or commit murder, there is already negligence in his growth.  Here alone, the child is already a victim of dysfunctional family which is responsibility of the parents.  Is there a decent job the government can give to the parents so that children will be provided their needs?  Is there good result on the high rising inflation and price hikes on goods and services to lessen the poverty? Is there free, affordable and quality education that the state can give to the marginalized children so that they can not wander in the street?  Are there programs such as education, recreation, community involvement, parent-child interaction training program to name a few to mold the child growth/personality?  In these, the children are the victims of government’s shortcomings.

 “If a child had found guilty in court, the child will not put in jail which is contrary to the understanding of many.  The child will undergo in a program of reformative institutions.  The purpose of these institutions is to help the children to be integrated back to the community after they have committed criminal acts.  This is the same with Bahay Pag-asa under DSWD.  The child will not treat criminal and will not be mix in the cell.  The children will be considered children in conflict with law”.  Precisely children should not be jailed.  Strengthen the R. A. 9344.  Reformative institution sounds so good and nice but how it could be implemented if Bahay Pag-asa itself, as revealed by its supervising staff is inadequate in facilities and have no enough staff.   The situation of our Bahay Pag-asa is not suited psychologically to experience in the state of a young child.  It needs proper staff to conduct study on the children, guide them, debrief them, and help their psychologically needs.  These are some that need to look as enhancing R.A. 9344.  Putting children behind these Bahay Pag-asa is abandoning our responsibilities. It is family’s responsibility to give them normal home; it is government’s responsibility to give them peaceful country.

"Whoever in the legal age used children to do crime will have maximum penalty reclusion perpetua.  In this way, the children will no longer be used to do crime specially in drugs manage by syndicate”.  This is the main point of the opposition.  Children are just victims.  Send them to DSWD, pursuit the syndicates, charge the parents and the government has to do its responsibilities to give the rights of the children.  Children are victims of circumstances that too young to rationalize the conflict.  We are matured adult, maybe at 30’s, 40’s or 50’s and yet sometimes we do not know how to control our emotion, how much more with these immature children?  We may see them going in and out the DSWD and we say they are not learning, but how could they learn if they see the undisciplined elders when they back to outside world again?  Remember they’re vulnerable.  They see rude, gangster and unruly adults in their environment.  They hear in the news about the corruptions in government.  They were debriefed inside the Bahay Pag-asa about killing is crime and when they were released they will hear from no less than the President says “Kill…, kill…, kill…”  Debriefed thou shall not kill yet they see adults that surround them are questioning it, debriefed that stealing is very wrong yet they hear “rob these Bishops or kill them”, debriefed that raping is heinous crime yet they hear “soldiers can rape women with impunity, no long as women are beautiful there will be cases of rape, the mayor should have been the first to rape the murdered Australian missionary, when he’s young he touched their maid,”.  These inconsistencies corrupt the young mind of the children so do you think it is healthy to hear for these susceptible children and yet you will demand to pursuit them when they have just followed the examples set by these elders?  When these children hear “Son of a bitch, f_ck you, gago”, mocking the God, what did you do to protect them?  If we are properly guiding our children, if these children were taken care of by the society, if they were given access to free and quality education, if they were raised in healthy environment, if they were provided with stable, loving and nurturing family, if they were given healthcare and nutrition, if the rights of the children are being address by the government, these children will not be spared.  Yes, other countries have even lower age of MAR but for God’s sake, look at their facilities and programs when it comes to juvenile. Look at their readiness to handle children’s cases. In a third-world country like Philippines, in a country whose voting citizens are politically immature, in a country that has weak juvenile justice system - do not compare apple to orange.  Just compare our MACR when we have become developed country and matured voters.  Compare apple to apple and orange to orange.