Amid the recent tragedies, including school-related violence around the country, lawmakers said that what children needed was an environment that did not foster and promote violence, rather than implementing stricter and more decisive punishment.

Gabriela Women’s Partylist Rep. Sarah Elago and Kabataan Partylist Rep. Renee Co shared similar views on lowering the age of criminal liability in the Philippines, noting that the youth should not be punished based on the information they consume daily.

In a statement, Elago said that such a measure only served to diminish the work that had been done to improve the protection of children’s rights across the country.

Rather than criminalizing children, the lawmaker stated that the government needed to focus on factors that directly influence how minors see the world, particularly technology, including social media.

Don’t target kids

“Children should not be targeted by laws that are centered on punishment while the government undermines the underlying cause of violence and the challenges facing them. Children are not criminals,” she said.

“The thought that the mere fact that children are exposed to technology and information means they should face the brunt of the law is alarming. This argument avoids discussions on poverty, the lack of social services, and the culture of violence in the country,” she added.

Elago mentioned that the current debate should not merely revolve around the age of criminal liability and should investigate the environment of children that normalizes impunity by way of physical force.

The sentiment was echoed by Co, who stressed that violence had been intertwined in the Filipino culture through the leaders who were elected for high-ranking political posts.

“It is profound when a president curses and says they will shoot and kill the mindset of children,” she told reporters during an interview at the House of Representatives.

The lawmaker mentioned that there were active efforts to fight back against impunity around the country; one such example was the inclusion of Vice President Sara Duterte’s verbal threats against high-ranking public officials as one of the Articles of Impeachment against her.