MEMBERS OF the Loyola Schools (LS) community denounced the House of Representatives Justice Committee’s approval of lowering the minimum age of criminal responsibility (MACR) as an amendment to Republic Act (RA) 10630.

The bill lowered the minimum age of criminal liability from 15 to 12 years old.

Following the bill’s approval on January 21, various organizations in the LS community expressed their sentiments on social media.

Children, not criminals

Musmos Ateneo, an organization catering towards the urban poor children of Katipunan and Cubao, released a statement condemning the bill on the same day it was approved, saying it is “anti-child, anti-poor, and it is a misguided and misdirected solution to the country’s systemic issues on criminality.”

Dedicated to supporting pediatric patients with chronic illnesses, Kythe-Ateneo also condemned the bill on their Facebook, saying that they stand by the Child Life Program, which also advocates for the right of children to live and learn despite external circumstances.

“By treating criminal acts perpetrated by children as being of the same weight as those perpetrated by adults, the unfortunate circumstances that the child is subjected to, and is subsequently a victim of, are irresponsibly overlooked and disregarded,” they wrote.

As an organization fighting against child sexual abuse and abandonment in the Philippines, TUGON Ateneo released a post denouncing the bill and saying that it is important to look into “why these children commit these crimes, and seek ways to guide them instead of stripping them away from their dignity and humanity.”

The Ateneo Catechetical Instruction League (ACIL), an organization aiming to provide religious guidance to urban poor children, released its own statement opposing the bill on January 22.

They stated that children who “come in conflict in the law deserve proper rehabilitation programs and interventions that will aid in their development as citizens of [the Philippine] nation.”

Home organization for psychology majors, Ateneo Psyche, also expressed their sentiments against the bill on January 22, asserting that “the confinement of children in prison serves as suboptimal conditions for proper value formation of these young individuals”.

Meanwhile, Matanglawin, the University’s student publication in the Filipino language, asserted their position on the bill on January 23.

They emphasized the message of one of their old issues, Muwang, that compared the different problems of the Filipino youth to the many colors of a rainbow, and looked to bring back rainbows to the youth as a symbol of happiness.

“Isa itong pagtrato sa mga kabataan bilang mga potensyal na kriminal sa lipunan nang walang pagkilala sa kanilang mga karapatan,” Matanglawin wrote.

([The bill] treats young people as potential social criminals without recognizing their rights).

“Ang kabataan ay dapat patuloy na bigyan ng pagkakataon upang maging mabuting mamamayan,” they added.

(The youth should continuously be given a chance to be good citizens).

Most recently, University President Jose Ramon Villarin, SJ released a memo regarding MACR on January 25.

Villarin’s post said that children should not be held at the same standard as adults, as their development is “still in flux.”

“Placing children in the same facilities as adults (as it was under the old law) subverts whatever hope we have for reform and rehabilitation,” he wrote.

Villarin concluded his memo saying that the law should be strengthened instead of changed, and that more energy must be spent on providing children with a better environment and resources to grow in.

“Let us invest ourselves instead [of changing the law] in providing all Filipino children with what they need to flourish and succeed,” he wrote.

“A stand of solidarity”

Moreover, the Sanggunian released an open letter to the Senate in their social media accounts on January 23, urging them to vote against the proposition as it “infringes on [children’s] fundamental dignity as young citizens and is inconsistent with the civil limitations [the] society has set for them.”

The Sanggunian stated that lowering the minimum age of criminal responsibility does not solve youth delinquency. Instead, “[the solution] lies in strengthening the Filipino family and community by providing [the Filipino children] with opportunities for personal development and by eradicating social and economic barriers that obstruct them to fully realize their growth.”

The post urged the LS Community to sign the open petition to the Senate. As of this writing, there are over 400 signatories from students and faculty members.

Following this open letter, the Sanggunian called for LS unity in mobilizing against the passage and implementation of the bill by attending a prayer vigil at Rajah Sulayman Plaza on January 25 and a mobilization to happen in campus on January 28.

The bill awaits review by the Senate before being set for approval by the President.