Special detention for juvenile delinquents sought
SENATOR Francis Escudero is proposing a special detention facility for youthful offenders in order to ensure their protection, treatment and rehabilitation in the purview of the juvenile justice system.
Escudero, who running for vice president, said the full implementation of the country’s juvenile justice law, the Juvenile Justice System and Welfare Act of 2013 or Republic Act 10630, would only be possible if the government establishes a correctional facility exclusive for children and young people in conflict with the law.
Should he and presidential aspirant Senator Grace Poe win in the May 9 elections, Escudero said they would allocate funds for the construction of a juvenile detention to effectively rehabilitate youth offenders.
“We aim to create a separate detention facility and the funds will be taken from the national government because local government unit cannot fund it,” the senator said. “Let’s take a look at the process on which they will be separated from common criminals but are still detained.”
Escudero said the rehabilitation center is an important component of the law but its full implementation is hampered because of lack of infrastructure for youth offenders.
Under the law, a child above 15 years old but below 18 years old can be exempt from criminal liability and be subject to an intervention program unless he or she has acted with discernment.
The exemption from criminal liability, however, does not include exemption from civil liability.
The senator said the law explicitly provides that juvenile delinquents cannot be de- tained in municipal jails alongside hardened criminals as administrative and criminal charges await authorities who will violate the law.
“Young people who commit crimes should be treated differently than adult criminals, and the only way to do that is to put them in a juvenile detention center that would provide them with positive, pro- social opportunities and ultimately rehabilitation,” Escudero said. ( Ruth Abbey Gita/Sunnex)