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[av_heading heading=’SO YOUNG YET SO CRIMINAL? | Cops to sue minors busted for drugs’ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=” subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”][/av_heading]
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Monday, March 27, 2017
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ILOILO City – Minors arrested in antidrug operations of the police will be slapped with appropriate charges, according to the spokesperson of the Police Regional Office 6 (PRO-6).
It will be up to the prosecutor to appreciate the complaint filed, said Superintendent Gilbert Gorero as reported by a local radio station. He was reacting to observations that minors were being used by drug traffickers to escape prosecution.
Republic Act (RA) 9344 or the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006 set the minimum age of criminal responsibility to 15 years old.
Section 6 of the Act as amended by RA 10630 states: “A child 15 years of age or under at the time of the commission of the offense shall be exempt from criminal liability. However, the child shall be subjected to an intervention program pursuant to Section 20 of this Act.”
A child above 15 years but below 18 years of age shall likewise be exempt from criminal liability and be subjected to an intervention program, unless he/she has acted with discernment, in which case, such child shall be subjected to the appropriate proceedings in accordance with the Act.
The law, however, made it clear that “the exemption from criminal liability…does not include exemption from civil liability, which shall be enforced in accordance with existing laws.”
Gorero said parents may be held liable, too, if their minor children violate the law.
Parents should not use poverty as an excuse to evade responsibility over their erring children, most especially those involved in illegal drugs, he stressed.
This was not the first time authorities called out parents vis-à-vis the illegal drugs problem. As early as 2015, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Region 6 said one of the most effective ways to shield children from illegal drugs was for parents to be more watchful.
Know who their friends are and monitor their activities, said then Regional Director Paul Ledesma.
Parents must do their share in protecting their children from illegal drugs, he stressed.
“We know that high school students are among the targets of drug dealers,” said Ledesma.
Currently, there are moves to lower the age of criminal responsibility.
House Bill No. 2 or the proposed “Minimum Age of Criminal Responsibility Act” seeks to lower the age of criminal responsibility to nine years old. The authors of the bill were Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez (Davao del Norte, 1st District) and Fredenil Castro (Capiz, 2nd District).
The Regional Juvenile Justice and Welfare Council (RJJWC) is against the proposed measure. It said lowering the minimum age of criminal responsibility:
* will not stop children from involvement in crimes
* will not help reduce the crime rate in the Philippines since adults commit more (around 98 percent) of crimes reported in the country
* will not protect or help children, as it is against the best interest of the child and will further re-victimize them
* will be costly and burdensome to the government
* ignores scientific proof on children’s brain development
* is against the Philippines’ legal obligations as a state party to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child
* is unconstitutional
* is not the solution, and government should instead address the gaps and ensure the full implementation of RA 9344, as amended by RA 10630./PN
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