DOJ eyes possible pattern of 'extremism' in Tacloban shooting
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Justice is looking into the possibility that the recent school shooting in Tacloban City is part of a "larger trend" of extremism.
In an interview with reporters on Tuesday, June 23, DOJ spokesperson Polo Martinez said the agency is not treating the incident as a simple case of bullying, but as a possible sign of nihilistic violent extremism.
"To downplay the discourse to just a simple bullying incident would be to downplay the whole issue entirely," Martinez said.
"It's a form of extremism, if it's specifically NVE, nihilistic violent extremism," he added.
Nihilistic violent extremism is characterized by the glorification or perpetration of extreme violence without a coherent, traditional ideological framework.
Martinez said children are highly impressionable and can be easily influenced or radicalized by what they see online.
He cited the Columbine High School shooting in the United States as an example of how such radicalization can manifest.
"You want to look after the welfare of children, see what the best interest may be of these children. So, kailangan pati yung mga ganung patterns of behavior, tingnan natin," Martinez said.
(You want to look after the welfare of children, see what the best interest may be of these children. So we also need to look into those kinds of patterns of behavior.)
Police Regional Office chief Jason Capoy earlier confirmed to reporters that one of the minor suspects had been playing "GoreBox," a game about destruction.
In response, the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center issued a temporary ban on the mobile game.
Are the suspects liable?
Republic Act 9344, or the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act, provides mechanisms for offenders who are 18 years old and below, according to Martinez.
Individuals below 15 are exempt from criminal liability, meaning they cannot be charged or face criminal penalties.
Instead, they may be placed under an intervention program, which may involve custody at a Bahay Pag-asa or a community-based intervention program managed by the local government unit and the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
For individuals aged 15 to 18, however, authorities must determine whether they acted with discernment.
"The discernment meaning alam ba niya ginagawa niya ay mali? Paano po natin aalamin kung alam niya ang ginagawa niya ay mali? You'll have to look at the details of the incident. Look at the evidence which were submitted," Martinez said.
(Discernment means whether the person knew that what they were doing was wrong. How do we determine whether they knew that what they were doing was wrong? You have to look at the details of the incident and the evidence submitted.)
Latest data from the Philippine National Police and the Tacloban local government showed that three people died and 20 others were injured in the shooting on the morning of June 22.
Of the 20 injured, 15 sustained gunshot wounds, while five were hurt due to non-gunshot-related injuries.
- Latest
- Trending
