Child rights advocate hits Senate’s pullbacks

A child rights advocate criticized the senators who withdrew their support for Senate Bill (SB) 1979, the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Bill, calling their actions “unfair.”

In a statement, the Child Rights Network (CRN) expressed disappointment over the move by some senators to retract their signatures from the committee report on the bill, describing it as “counterproductive” and “unfair.”

“It is unfair to the bill’s authors, as well as to children’s and women’s rights advocates who have held consultations, helped refine, and participated in the legislative process fairly and squarely since the bill was first filed in the 17th Congress. This bill has been almost a decade in the making,” the CRN said.

The group emphasized that the purpose of plenary deliberations is to discuss differences, propose amendments, and improve the language of a bill, rather than pulling support before proper discussions could take place.

The bill passed in the House of Representatives on 5 September 2023, with 232 votes in favor, none against, and no abstentions. In the Senate, however, the bill has stalled since August 2024, remaining in the period of interpellation with no further progress.

On Wednesday, six senators — Ramon Revilla Jr., Joseph Victor Ejercito, Cynthia Villar, Nancy Binay, Christopher “Bong” Go, and Jinggoy Estrada — withdrew their support for the bill.

Senator Risa Hontiveros, chair of the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations, and Gender Equality, announced that she would file a substitute bill following the withdrawal of support by her colleagues.

The CRN also urged Senators Joel Villanueva and Juan Miguel Zubiri to specify the provisions they had described in the media as “inappropriate” and to engage in a proper deliberation.

“Show us what is inappropriate in this bill, and for once be fair to those who have worked hard to support a legislation that protects children, especially girls, from the dire consequences of abuse and teenage pregnancy,” the CRN said.

The group called on Villanueva and Zubiri to address their concerns through the proper legislative process, stating, “Proceed with your intention to deliberate with the author and propose to delete what you believe should be deleted.”

Earlier, Villanueva voiced his opposition to the bill, saying it “is not important,” while Zubiri warned that the bill could encourage children to “experiment” with sex.