New chance in life

The United Nations Children’s Fund estimated there are about 4,000 children who were imprisoned in the Philippines at the end of 2005, most of them charged with minor crimes but mixed and detained with adult criminal offenders. Last May 16, President Arroyo signed Republic Act (RA) No. 9344 or the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006. Advocates and activists for children’s rights and welfare hailed and celebrated this new law as a long-awaited milestone in the promotion of child rights and welfare in the Philippines.

Last Aug. 16, or exactly three months after this new law was signed, the seven-man Juvenile Justice and Welfare Council came out with implementing rules and regulations (IRR) for RA 9344. Reading through the 82-page IRR, I had a crash course on new terminologies, or politically correct terms on how to treat juvenile delinquents who are now called "children in conflict with the law" under RA 9344.

In the outline of the principles of this new law, the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act 2006 calls for "restorative justice" to be incorporated into all laws, policies and programs applicable to "children in conflict with the law." It defines restorative justice as "… a principle which requires a process of resolving conflicts with the maximum involvement of the victim, the offender and the community. It seeks to obtain reparation for the victim; reconciliation of the offender, the offended and the community; and reassurance to the offender that he/she can be reintegrated into society. It also enhances public safety by activating the offender, the victim and the community in prevention strategies."

Section 6 of RA 9344 specifies children under the age of 15 at the time of the commission of the offense cannot be charged with a crime. A child above 15 but below 18 years of age but "who acted without discernment at the time of the commission of the offense" is also exempt from criminal liability. This law defines "discernment" as the mental capacity to understand the difference between right and wrong and its consequences.

As provided in Section 6 of this law, the exemption from criminal liability of children does not include exemption from civil liability, which shall be enforced in accordance with existing laws. Children exempt from criminal liability as referred in this law shall be subjected, however, to an "intervention" program. The "intervention" programs may include any or a combination of counseling; peer counseling and life skills training and education; livelihood programs, etc.

For 15- to 18-year-old juveniles, "diversion" away from court is the preferred method for responding to crimes that carry a possible sentence of six years or less. RA 9344 defines "diversion" as an alternative, child-appropriate process of determining the responsibility and treatment of a "child in conflict with the law" on the basis of his/her social, cultural, economic, psychological or educational background without resorting to formal court proceedings. The "child in conflict with the law" is required to undergo this diversion program after he/she is found responsible for an offense without being taken to courts.

The implementation of a diversion program exempts these minors from prosecution for the crime of vagrancy and prostitution, mendicancy, and even of sniffing of rugby. This provision for "diversion" under this fairly new law will take longer to implement as local committees for the protection of children are formed and personnel of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the local government units are trained.

The DSWD chairs the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Council, which is another provision of RA 9344. DSWD Undersecretary Celia Yangco said first-time child offenders will be the one to fully benefit from the law. She, however, fears that adults will take advantage of the new rule by using children as accomplices or accessories to a crime, which is currently happening. I’m not a sociology expert, but I have seen so many movie or TV tele-novela drama stories about people who, early on in their childhood turned to a life of crime or were forced to commit crime due to extreme poverty. In real life, we see everyday these children and teen-aged boys and girls who are involved in many of the street crimes, from cellphone or bag snatching to a deadly business of acting as drug couriers.

Many important features of the Juvenile Justice System law have been adopted from provisions of major international agreements such as the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice, UN Guidelines for the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency, and the UN Rules for the Protection of Juvenile Deprived of Liberty. Under pressure from the international community, our Juvenile Justice System appears to have embraced more than we could actually do and implement. We are not a welfare state to be able to provide the huge resource requirements for the kind of activities that can transform "children in conflict with the law" into law-abiding citizens.

Since RA 9344 became effective, a number of juveniles languishing in jails in Metro Manila and other parts of the country have been freed and sent back to their homes with their respective parents and guardians while others were transferred to youth homes either run by national or local government, or by non-government organizations. It is estimated that over 1,500 criminal cases against offenders younger than 15 will be dismissed as the law is implemented retroactively.

Given the slow grind of justice in our country, those convicted and jailed for the crimes they committed at those ages now classified as "child in conflict with the law", are now full-grown adults. The laws of the land are interpreted liberally in favor of the offender and therefore, these "once-children-in-conflict-with-the-law" when they committed crimes would be released from prison, being among those who are benefited by the passage of this law. Precedent of this was the abolition of the "Death Penalty Law" which was also retroactively applied to more than 1,500 death row convicts languishing at the maximum security cells of the national state penitentiary in Muntinlupa City.

We could only hope and pray those former juveniles have been fully rehabilitated while in jail since the penal system is supposed to do this for them. Now, they are being given a new chance to turn over a new leaf and another opportunity to return to the mainstream of society and rejoin the rest of law-abiding citizens.

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