ONE OF THE participants in our Zoom meeting shared his thoughts about the pandemic. He said that being in our home is a blessing in disguise because we get the chance to be with our loved ones and enjoy from a virus-free environment.
He encouraged everyone to plant in the garden, exercise a few minutes every morning, and make time to meditate.
This may be true to some because we basically take a rest or do our favorite hobby at home. Sadly, others do not feel the same way – even to kids who love to play. Why?
We heard stories of suicides and maltreatments inside their homes. Aside from this, some kids consider their homes as a torture chamber. They are vulnerable to sexual abuse in the family.
This has resulted to severe physical, psychological and social harm on children. Some of them experienced trauma affecting their ability to take care of themselves and others. Physically, they have experienced sexually transmitted infections, unwanted pregnancy, and social isolation.
These resulted to a toll on the families and communities, too. How can the government protect families, especially the children?
One of the problems in this area is the age of consent which is 12. It is the youngest age of consent in Asia and one of the youngest in the world. This means that children of that age are capable of giving consent to sex.
This is very problematic because predators may claim that the victims consented though in reality the latter were forced and threatened.
Raising the age is one step to help the victims. Last year, a bill was passed by the House of Representatives (HoR). However, the bill has a long way before it becomes a law.
First, the Senate has to draft and pass a counterpart bill.
Second, the HoR and the Senate must meet to negotiate any points of disagreement.
Third, once they have reached a bicameral agreement, the bill must then be signed by the President.
But considering that the elections are less than a year away, we are definitely running out of time.
The existing penal code should be amended. The anti-child abuse law should likewise be amended. Aside from raising the age of consent from 12 to 16, the law should as well expand the definition of rape.
Section 2 of Republic Act 8353 or the Anti-Rape Law says that sexual act without intimidation or abuse is not considered rape if the woman is 12 years old and above.
Certainly, the victims can still seek remedy through RA 7610 or the Law Against Child Abuse when there was money or coercion involved with those 12 to 17 years old. And if a male 12 to 15 years old who have consensual sex is not liable under RA 7610, then they are liable under RA 10630 or the amended Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act.
In passing the law, Congress must include exceptions to protect the victims from being labeled as sex offenders for having consensual sex with older people or even with their peers.
We need a change to ensure that children are protected from harm./PN
