Over 900 children rescued in drug operations in 2018 — PDEA 

MANILA, Philippines — Over 927 children were rescued in drug operations in 2018, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency said during the “Real Numbers PH” press conference on Friday afternoon. 

According to Maharani Gadaoni-Tosoc, PDEA plans and operations director, all of the children rescued were from the ages of 10 to 17.

“A total of 533 or 57 percent [of children rescued] were into selling of illegal drugs,” she said. 

The “Real Numbers” press conference is held regularly by law enforcement and the Presidential Communications and Operations Office to update the public on the government’s data on the campaign against drugs. 

The report comes on the heels of the controversial measure to lower the age of criminal responsibility to 12 years of age. House Bill 8858 was approved by the committee on justice earlier this week and initially lowered the age to 9 years old, before it was later increased to 12. 

The Senate’s justice and human rights committee also opened discussions on proposing a similar measure. 

PCOO Assistant Secretary Ana Marie Banaag discussed the bill during the press conference. 

“Dito sa batas na ito, wala namang bata automatic mabibilango (under this law no child will automatically be jailed),” Banaag said. 
 
“The general rule is when a child is 12 years old and below. If he or she commits a crime, they’ll be given to their parents,” she explained in a mix of Filipino and English. “Unless it’s assessed by the DSWD that they need to be referred to the Bahay Pag-asa (House of Hope), that’s the only time." 

Children's rights groups slammed the bill after it was approved by the House committee earlier, saying it was a “short-sighted solution” as it places blame on children rather than addressing the root causes that drive them to engage in criminal activities

READ: Council for the Welfare of Children: Jailing kids a 'short-sighted solution'

Banaag clarified that even for children above the age of 12 and below 18, “there is no automatic imprisonment, unless the child acted with discernment.” 

“And even if the child acted with discernment, hindi automatic na dadalhin siya sa bilangguan ng mga adults (it’s not automatic that they’ll be brought to adult prisons),” she added. 

She explained that even children in conflict with the law, and even serious crimes would be committee, they would still be given due process. 

Discernment, as defined by the Rule on Juveniles in Conflict with the Law, is the “capacity of the child at the time of the commission of the offense to understand the differences between right and wrong and the consequences of the wrongful act.”

President Rodrigo Duterte has been a main advocate of lowering the age of criminal responsibility, saying the law allegedly allows children to get away with serious crimes. 

Current opposition Sen. Francis Pangilinan was the principal author of RA 9344, the law that the current measure being discussed in the House seeks to amend. 

Duterte called Pangilinan the "dumbest lawyer" over this and expressed his desire for the law to be amended on several occasions. 

READ: Duterte calls Pangilinan 'dumbest lawyer' over Juvenile Justice Law

Banaag added that under the current proposal, a Bahay Pag-asa — where children in conflict with the law are supposed to be brought — would be built in every city and municipality. 

But even Bahay Pag-asa facilities are getting criticism from children's rights advocates for its poor conditions.  

READ: Juvenile Justice and Welfare Council: Some Bahay Pag-asa centers ‘worse than prisons’

Tricia Oco, executive director of the government's Juvenile Justice and Welfare Council, said the centers have “subhuman conditions” due to budget constraints.

The number of children who died or were orphaned in the drug war was not discussed during the “Real Numbers” press conference, however. 

Children's rights organization Children's Legal Rights and Development Center pegged the number of children killed at 54 since the beginning of the drug war in 2016, while an Ateneo School of Government study showed that 32,395 were orphaned because of the drug campaign.