QUEZON CITY. The Caucus of Development NGO Networks (CODE-NGO), the largest network of development CSOs in the country, enjoins everyone for the “Busina Para sa mga Bata” on 28 January 2019. Busina Para sa mga Bata is CODE-NGO’s response to call for action by the government against House Bill No. 8858 which seeks to lower the Minimum Age of Criminal Responsibility (MACR) from fifteen to twelve years old.

The Organization believes that HB 8858 and other related bills stand in conflict with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, the 1987 Philippine Constitution, and the Child and Youth Welfare Code – which clearly state that the promotion and protection of children must be the State’s main priority. As the largest network of development CSOs, CODE-NGO is deeply worried about the attempt to put younger children in jail supposedly to solve the increasing number of juvenile cases; as this will not solve the problem but will only create bigger challenges both for child development and for the Philippine society as a whole.

However, CODE-NGO stands firm that opposing the criminalization of children does not mean tolerating the wrong actions of child offenders. The network believes that there is a need to create a holistic and protective environment for children, and to ensure that any corrective measure should be in line with the children’s best interest, as mandated by the UN Convention and the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act. CODE-NGO member, the National Council of Social Development Foundation of the Philippines (NCSD), a 60-year old network of child rights and welfare organizations, adds that by lowering MACR, “we are allowing our society to perceive that children themselves are the source of the problem. The real reasons why children offend are the consequences of various interconnected factors, such as poverty, domestic violence, poor parenting, peer pressure and others. Children are only victims of such familial and societal dysfunctions.”

Thus, CODE-NGO calls on the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches of the government to uphold children’s rights, safeguard children’s interest and promote family-based, community-based programs, and other alternatives to properly address the needs of children and their families who experience juvenile crimes and cases.

Busina Para sa mga Bata will be held on 28 January 2019, from 5:00 pm to 6:30 pm at the Gate 2.5, Ateneo De Manila University, Quezon City. CODE-NGO encourages everyone to join and honk their car horns as support for the protection of children’s rights and welfare in the country.