St.

Paul University Surigao

Surigao City

Suppressing Juvenile Delinquency in Surigao City

(Sustainable Development Goal: No Poverty, end poverty in all its forms everywhere)

Policy Paper in Public Public Policy and Analysis

Submitted by:

Nescile Jake B. Ganto

Submitted to:

Pio Cristobal Rosero, PhD.

Poverty is one of the greatest social problems that the Philippines is experiencing

right now. According to Abella 2016, children are the priceless gift from God and are the

treasure of one family. The family and the community have the primal role in shaping

the totality of these children. However, due some circumstances some children deviate

from the standard norms and become in conflict with the promulgated

laws. Mental health professionals describe delinquency as a pattern of bad or disruptive

behavior, such as bulling and lying, which may lead to more serious anti-social

activities, such as fighting and stealing. If not corrected, bad juvenile behavior can have

far-reaching ramifications, such as serious bodily injury, arrest or death, for both you

and your teen.

Juvenile delinquents are minors, usually defined as being between the ages of

10 and 18, who have committed some act that violates the law. These acts aren’t called

“crimes” as they would be for adults. Rather, crimes committed by minors are called

“delinquent acts.” Instead of a trial, the juvenile has an “adjudication,” after which she

receives a “disposition” and a sentence. However, juvenile proceedings differ from adult

proceedings in a number of ways. Delinquent acts generally fall into two categories. The

first type of delinquent act is one that would be considered a crime had an adult

committed it. For particularly serious crimes, some jurisdictions will even try children as

adults. When children are tried as juveniles, on the other hand, parents are often

required to pay the court costs for the child (Reuters, 2018.) Furthermore, as defined by

Eduardo, juvenile delinquency pertains to ‘criminal acts’ performed by juveniles. Most

Youth crime is an aspect of crime which receives great attention from the news media

and politicians’. (Eduardo, 2012:7).

As a sum, we cannot deny the fact the Juvenile Delinquency is one of the

alarming social issues and phenomena not only in the Philippines but all over the world.

Philippines is part of the third world country that experiencing this Juvenile Delinquency

because of some factors that might affect to their lives especially it is because of this

high rate of poverty.

Juvenile Delinquency Issues

The problems of street children and juvenile delinquents are much related social

problems. To survive in the street you almost have to become delinquent. Exposed to

criminal elements these children are vulnerable to prostitution, drug addiction and

pushing and commission of crimes. Most street children have become juvenile

delinquents either out of necessity (because they are poor) or through force (because of

the syndicates). Young people in the streets are also criminalized and stigmatized for no

obvious crime committed. So many times the streets were cleaned up at the start of the

tourist season and as a consequence many street children were jailed because of

vagrancy laws (Atty. Laserna Jr., 2010).

1. Philippines Juvenile Justice: A Life Behind Bars

More than 50,000 children have been arrested and detained in the Philippines

since 1995. According to UNICEF, almost 28 children get arrested on a daily basis or

more than one child per hour. But what’s really alarming about this situation is the fact
that these minors are often detained in the same cells as adult offenders (Belonio,

2017). In addition, children incarceration violates the law that says the children in

conflict with the law must have diversion, are not jailed and punished. They should have

restorative justice. The rule of law however is not always implemented in the

Philippines. Local governments send children in conflict with the law to jails instead of

providing them with decent homes. It is not the end of a brutal punishment, it is the

beginning. The children are punished with severe detention in decrepit conditions in

overcrowded jail cells where they suffer neglect, deprivation, hunger and are abused by

older inmates and sometimes the guards. Some children, especially the girls, endure

sexual abuse, rape and beatings (Cullen, 2017).

2. Criminalizing children in jails

Republic Act 10630, which amended the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Law or RA

9344, declares that any child under the age of 15 who commits a serious crime “shall be

deemed a neglected child under Presidential Decree No. 603, as amended and the

child shall be mandatorily placed in a special facility within the youth care facility or

Bahay Pag-asa called Intensive Juvenile Intervention and Support Center. According to

Cullen (2017) repeat offenders or children who have committed crimes more than three

times, would also be considered as neglected children and, as such, must undergo

intervention programs supervised by the local social welfare and development officers.

3. Cultural factors

Delinquent behavior often occurs in social settings in which the norms for

acceptable behavior have broken down. Under such circumstances many of the
common rules that deter people from committing socially unacceptable acts may lose

their relevance for some members of society. They respond to the traumatizing and

destructive changes in the social reality by engaging in rebellious, deviant or even

criminal activities (World Youth Report, 2003).

4. Drug Abuse

According to UIA (2017) most drug users begin taking drugs at an early age, as

adolescents or even younger. Taking drugs while the body is still forming interrupts the

normal maturing process and compounds the dangers posed to the user as an adult.

When children cannot multiply or divide at age 11, they can be taught at age 12. But

when a child's mind is destroyed by drugs, that child may not be able to start again. The

time lost and the damage done may be irreversible. Such young users are less aware

than adults to the risks of substance abuse and are more likely to have more serious

problems with it later in life. Students who use marijuana regularly are statistically twice

as likely to receive below-average marks or failing grades; school drop-outs are twice as

likely to be frequent drug users. Alcoholic toxic mania may develop out of the

combination of a certain personality, the environment, and the influence of the drug.

5. The Media

Television and movies have popularized the “cult of heroes”, which promotes justice

through the physical elimination of enemies. Many researchers have concluded that

young people who watch violence tend to behave more aggressively or violently,

particularly when provoked. This is mainly characteristic of 8- to 12-year-old boys, who

are more vulnerable to such influences. According to World Youth Report (2003) media
bring an individual to violence in three ways. First, movies that demonstrate violent acts

excite spectators, and the aggressive energy can then be transferred to everyday life,

pushing an individual to engage in physical activity on the streets. Second, television

can portray ordinary daily violence committed by parents or peers (the imposition of

penalties for failing to study or for violations of certain rules or norms of conduct). Third,

violence depicted in the media is unreal and has a surrealistic quality; wounds bleed

less, and the real pain and agony resulting from violent actions are very rarely shown,

so the consequences of violent behavior often seem negligible. Over time, television

causes a shift in the system of human values and indirectly leads children to view

violence as a desirable and even courageous way of reestablishing justice.

6. Gang Wars

Groups of adolescents, usually male, from urban working class or

underprivileged districts, take part in aggressive and delinquent activities both within the

gang and outside it, fighting other gangs, committing assault and theft and damage to

property. Rarely are such gangs’ organized crime units, more often they are delinquent

as a means for obtaining 'kicks'. Increasingly street gangs are involved in drug

trafficking, intimidation and violence. Some gangs have initiation rituals, including

shooting people. Not all gangs are as well-organized and hierarchical as the Crips and

Bloods, but most offer a social haven for outcasts who crave a sense of belonging.

Gangs are closely related to socioeconomic status, unemployment and a generalized

feeling of disenfranchisement ([Link] In

addition, membership in a delinquent gang, like membership in any other natural

grouping, can be part of the process of becoming an adult. Through such primary
associations, an individual acquires a sense of safety and security, develops knowledge

of social interaction, and can demonstrate such qualities as loyalty or leadership. In

“adult” society, factors such as social status, private welfare, race and ethnicity are of

great value; however, all members of adolescent groups are essentially in an equal

position and have similar opportunities for advancement in the hierarchical structure

(World Youth Report, 2003).

7. Human-rights abuse

THE leftist group Karapatan said children in conflict with the law are prone to

human-rights abuse. According to San Juan & Mayuga (2016) even before a court of

law finds them guilty of a crime, they already end up in juvenile facilities or, worse,

detention where they suffer psychological and emotional trauma, like adult criminal

offenders do while in detention.

8. Economic and social factors

According to World Youth Report (2003) juvenile delinquency is driven by the

negative consequences of social and economic development, in particular economic

crises, political instability, and the weakening of major institutions (including the State,

systems of public education and public assistance, and the family). Socio-economic

instability is often linked to persistent unemployment and low incomes among the

young, which can increase the likelihood of their involvement in criminal activity.
Solutions to Suppress Juvenile Delinquency

1. Proper support and guidance

Punishment is not the solution for disciplining the child because punitive and

harsh and doesn't consider children's developmental needs, is replaced with responses

which teach children how to modify and control their own behavior as they grow and

mature. Rather than expecting an immediate change in your child's behavior, think

about behavior as a developmental process that takes time to master. Let’s consider

how positive guidance might look as children grow and learn over time.

2. Strong Law in suppressing Juvenile Delinquency

The government should take actions to implement a strong law with regards in

suppressing juvenile delinquency in Surigao City in order to maintain the harmonious

relation of the parents and the child/children. It should be implemented as soon as

possible to lessen the numbers of children who engage to such juvenile delinquency

activities.

3. Training and education programs

The government of Surigao City should mandate the schools (both private and

public) to conduct seminars with regards to this juvenile delinquency so that the

students will be aware what will be the consequences and punishment if they will

engage to such activities that is punishable by law.

1. The government, specifically in Surigao City should allocate a bigger fund for the

sustenance for the catering of the Children in Conflict with the Law.

2. The government should strengthen the Republic Act No. 9344 “AN ACT

ESTABLISHING A COMPREHENSIVE JUVENILE JUSTICE AND WELFARE

SYSTEM, CREATING THE JUVENILE JUSTICE AND WELFARE COUNCIL

UNDER THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, APPROPRIATING FUNDS

THEREFOR AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES” to suppress the juvenile

delinquency issues in Surigao City.

3. The government in Surigao City should strengthen its actions and interventions

regarding the cases of the Children in Conflict with Law.

4. Conduct the same research with the same methodology but in a different locale

to have more knowledge in understanding the issues in Juvenile Delinquency

concerning the Children in Conflict with the Law.

5. The law states that local government units (LGU) should allot budget for homes

and counselors as part of the Delinquency Prevention Program.

6. The availability of appropriate services for children at the local level is an

imperative to address child offending issues. The need to prepare the community

and society in general should be a crucial and timely undertaking, as well.

References:

Articles/Books and Journals

Abella, J.L. (2016). Extent of the Factors Influencing the Delinquent Acts among
Children in Conflict with the Law. Journal of Child and Adolescents
Behavior.

Eduardo, Jesster Jr. P. (2012). Juvenile Delinquency and Crime Prevention,

World Youth Report. ( 2003). Juvenile Delinquency

Internet:

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