House approves lower age of criminal liability, pegs it at 12

After only two days of plenary deliberations, the House of Representatives has approved on second reading the lowering of the age of criminal responsibility.

The House plenary, however, pegged the age at 12 years old , not at nine as passed by the Committee on Justice.

Panel chair Salvador Leachon, who sponsored the bill in the plenary, said the changing of the age of liability from nine to 12 years old was the consensus of the majority of House members when he went around to consult them.

The bill has drawn criticisms from various groups and some senators, who questioned the detention of nine-year-olds.  They said that without the adequate program and infrastructure in place, there was no chance for the children to be rehabilitated.

In an interview with reporters, Leachon said many House members have reservations at the original proposal of nine years.

"More than majority of the members said na 12 na lang," he said.

He said that more 160 House members are amenable to replace the original proposal of nine years old to 12 years old.

At the same time, the amended measure replaced the term "criminal" with "social" responsibility.

Apart from these changes, the amended measure also inserted the provisions for the construction and funding for Bahay Pag-asa, where the children who committed serious offenses will be confined, to ensure that there will be budget for this, Leachon said.

Under the amended measure, a child 12 years old and below at the time of the commission of offense would be exempted from liability.

Meanwhile, those above 12 years old but under 18 years old would be exempted from liability and be subjected to intervention program unless the minor acted with discernment.

Leachon denied that the approval of the bill was railroaded, considering that it underwent "11 committee meetings and four technical working groups meetings" since 2016.

But the chamber had to approve it immediately because there are only a few days left before the 17th Congress ends.

"Kapag hindi mo minadali, masasayang effort mo for two years," Leachon said.

With the amendment on the age of liability, the House's version of the bill will now be aligned with Senate President Vicente Sotto III's proposal of 12 years old as the minimum age of liability for children in conflict with the law. 

Sotto's Senate Bill 2026 bill states that a child below 18 years of age but above 12 at the time of the commission of the crime would be held criminally liable and subjected to the appropriate proceedings, unless proven that he/she acted without discernment.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development has also suggested that the age of liability be lowered to 12 years old, as this was in accordance with international standards, provided the agenda of the law was to guide the child to change and be able to return to the community.

"Not lower than 12 years old. Ito ay bunsod mula sa ibat ibang pag-aaral at research na ginawa ng department," DSWD's spokesperson and Assistant Secretary Glenda Relova told GMA News.

Relova cited three international documents as bases: the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, United Nations Guidelines for the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency (The Riyadh Guidelines) and UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice (The Beijing Rules).

“We factored in yung exposure din ng mga bata sa different educational access and opportunities. At the age of 9 very limited pa din naman yung educational opportunities for them," Relova said.

"Samantalang kung ito ay 12 years old nandoon na sila sa grade 7. Kasi ang 9 years old grade 3 lang yata yan. Yung full faculty ng maturity ng isang bata ay hindi niya na-a-achieve at the age of 9 years old,” she added. —NB/ LDF, GMA News