Senate panel seeks total review of Juvenile Law

MANILA, Philippines — With the nation still reeling from a series of serious crimes involving minors, a Senate committee chaired by Sen. Erwin Tulfo is set to review the implementation of Republic Act 9344 or the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006.

In initiating a review of RA 9344, Tulfo noted “really glaring gaps” that he said may have deprived victims of heinous crimes of justice and emboldened some minors to commit crimes.

“Even before I became a public servant, I witnessed the harsh realities of this law on the ground. For years, helpless victims of minor-led crimes flooded our public service shows, who feel completely helpless because of the Juvenile Law implementation,” he said in a statement.

“This review will cover all bases. We are actively getting insights from law experts, law enforcement, social welfare groups, the church, medical professionals, and parents themselves. We need every perspective on the table because we are not just looking at the fine print of the law – we are fixing a broken reality on the ground,” he said.

Early this month, a shooting incident perpetrated by two minor students in Tacloban City killed three people. Stabbing incidents – also involving minors – were also reported in Negros Occidental and Cavite.

As a media personality, Tulfo said he was critical of the enforcement of the law, particularly citing the lack of funding for Bahay Pag-asa centers. He also finds questionable the current age of criminal liability.

When he was head of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Tulfo said he witnessed first hand the systemic failures of the law’s implementation.

By pushing for an investigation by his committee, Tulfo said he aims to “overhaul the broken system,” by zeroing on what he said was “severe shortage” of functional Bahay Pag-asa facilities, as well as on the effectiveness of intervention programs for Children in Conflict with the Law (CICL) and Children at Risk (CAR), and the enforcement of strict parental accountability, among other issues.

He said the committee would be focusing on reviewing the lack of Bahay Pag-asa, and on how intervention programs are applied to CICL and on CAR, as well as on how parental accountability is being enforced.

His committee, Tulfo added, will also review the provisions of the law on age threshold for criminal liability.

He asked: “Is the age threshold on criminal liability still realistic given the signs of the times? Are parents of these CICLs being held accountable enough? Are the rehabilitation facilities even existing, let alone working?”

Tulfo clarified that his panel is set on fixing broken enforcement mechanisms to strike a balance between absolute justice for the victims and genuine rehabilitation for minors.