Children
in the Philippines can be arrested and detained like adults
from the age of nine years old.
The Council
for the Welfare of Children reported that from 1995 to 2000,
52,756 children have been in conflict with the law. Many of
these cases involved the detention of minors, often in the
same cells as adult offenders. Since 2003, over 26,000 children
have been provided legal assistance by the Public Attorney's
Office.
More than
half of the crimes for which minors are charged are not serious
offenses. These include petty theft, sniffing of glue or solvents,
vagrancy and violation of curfew hours. Many cases involving
children are not reviewed immediately. Most are eventually
dismissed by the courts due to out of court settlements or
the failure of witnesses to appear during the trial. Many
children experience detention in sub-standard conditions for
long periods of time before their cases are finally resolved.
The UN Committee
on the Rights of the Child expressed its concern about the
Philippine government administers juvenile justice and the
incompatibility of the existing justice system with the principles
and provisions of the Convention and other international standards
relating to juvenile justice. The Committee recommended a
comprehensive reform of the system of administration of juvenile
justice in the Philippines.
Keep
children out of adult jails.
Help us urge our lawmakers to pass a Comprehensive Juvenile
Justice System.
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