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Summary: On Wednesday 18 May, the Commitee
examined the second periodic report of The
Philippines. This summary highlights the main
issues discussed by the government
delegation and members of the Committee; it
is produced by the NGO Group for the
Convention on the Rights of the Child.
The Philippines ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in
1990, the Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution, and
child pornography in 2002, and the Optional Protocol on the involvement of
children in armed conflict in 2003. The Committee on the Rights of the Child
(the Committee) met with State Party representatives on 18 May 2005 to
review the Philippines’ second report on the implementation of the CRC.
Opening Comments
The Head of the Philippines Delegation, the Honourable Ms. Lafgo informed
the Committee that the State made substantial progress in harmonizing its
legislation with the CRC. The Juvenile Justice Act (JJA) was undeclared, but
the Delegation indicated that it would soon be passed.
Ms. Lafgo stated that the Government was working to strengthen local
Governments and local service providers. Programmes involving children
were initiated in partnership with local groups and Non-Government
Organisations (NGOs) and were developed in accordance with the
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and ‘A World Fit for Children’. There
were improvements in Early Childhood Development (ECD), but high drop
out rates were still an issue.
Mr. Kotrane, the Country Rapporteur, recognized the progress made,
especially at village (Barangay) level. He highlighted that the geography of
the Philippines (lots of small islands) made it difficult to implement health
and education programmes in the entire country. He also recognized that
the numerous migrant works separated from their children made the
implementation of the CRC more complicated. The recent typhoon and
armed conflict continued to challenge coordination efforts.
While Mr. Kotrane noted the considerable efforts in legislative
development, he was concerned about the effective implementation of the
legislation, in particular the protection of children from all forms of abuse.
Poverty and sex tourism continued and laws were not effectively
implemented at local level. Mr. Kotrane referred to the ongoing
discrimination against girls and asked how the State intended to combat
patriarchy society.
Legislation
The Committee acknowledged the new Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act, the
Act Prohibiting Employment of Children in Hazardous Areas, the Anti-
Violence Against Women and their Children, the Newborn Screening Act,
the Dangerous Drugs Act and the Act Providing Illegitimate Children the
Right to Use the Surname of their Father.
Definition of the Child
The Committee noted that the age for criminal responsibility was 9 years
old contrary to the CRC and the age of sexual consent was unclear. The
proposed JJA would increase the age for criminal responsibility to 12.
Budget
The Committee asked the Delegation if it would consider reducing debt
servicing to provide more funding for social programmes. The Committee
was concerned about the effects of the State’s Free Trade Agreement
(FTA) negotiations on access to cheaper medicines. The Committee asked if
it would condemn the imposed requirements by certain FTA partners. The
Committee also wanted to be informed about poverty reduction. The
Committee noted that 42% of the population was under 18 and that this
section of the population did not benefit from a complimentary budget
allocation.
The Delegation responded that the entire budget, not just the budget for
children, had been reduced due to natural disasters. They noted that the
local budget data that was specifically allocated to children had increased
over the last two years. Part of the budget came from the National
Government and local taxes. In regard to the debt servicing, the State was
looking to improve it, but it also involved the creditors. The Philippines was
a strong supporter of generic medicines which underlined the negotiations
in the FTA. However, in negotiations, concessions sometimes had to be
made.
Data Collection
The Committee noted that the report was generally good, although there
were inconsistency in some data. The latter went up to 19 years of age,
which made it difficult to disaggregate the under 18 data. There was
missing data on children with disabilities, as well as those who were
migrants, in residential care, in extreme poverty, minorities, indigenous,
and in conflict with the law.
Birth Registration
The Committee expressed concern about unregistered children and the
costs for getting them registered. The Delegation provided an example of a
partnership with NGOs in the southern Philippines where they were
working to document migrant families.
Children’s Participation
The Committee asked about the process for selecting members of the
children’s parliament. It asked about the student councils which were
reportedly inactive and whether the councils were mandatory. The
Committee asked about the Youth Councils in communities which were
reported as being mostly inactive and misused by local political leaders to
further their interests.
Discrimination
The Committee was concerned about the discrimination against children
born out of wedlock. The Committee queried the circumstances required for
a child to use his father’s name under the new legislation and asked if the
State would provide free DNA testing. It recommended that the
term ‘illegitimate’ be changed to ‘born out of wedlock’ and asked about
inheritance rights of these children, the age at which a child could
represent himself to change his name. The Committee asked who else
could apply to have their name changed. The Delegation responded that it
was not happy with the limitations of the new legislation requiring the
father’s consent and only allowing 50% inheritance. DNA testing was not
provided due to cost.
The Committee noted disparities in income (in 2002) with certain areas
having nearly 10 times that of the poorest region. The Committee asked
about the measures taken to eliminate disparities and to ensure the war
on terror did not affect Muslim children.
Migrant Workers
The Committee described the instability that overseas work created for
families, given that 73% were women. This led to a feminisation of poverty
leaving the children without parents. It asked about maintenance issues
and whether the State has bilateral agreements to cover board overseas
and the level of Government support. The Delegation agreed with the
feminisation of poverty as mothers went to work overseas and their
mothers or sisters took care of their families. This was done through legal
guardianship and kinship care. The Philippines had an International Social
Service Network with Social Workers throughout the world to assist
women and their children. Embassies had Welfare Officers to assist
workers overseas as well as their Employment Bureaus.
Health
The Committee enquired about data showing the higher number of males
and the better health of females. The Delegation confirmed that female
children received more medical services, but it could not explain the higher
numbers of male children. Abortion and infanticide were not practiced in
the Philippines and both sexes were valued.
The Committee queried the low rate of HIV data, as there were many
street children, sex workers and premarital sex. The Delegation responded
that the narcotics used were rarely injected and that the statistics
indicated that there was a low level of infection.
The Committee enquired about the State’s strategy for disabled children
and adolescents. It noted that the Government’s data showed that 14%
of children were disabled. The Committee asked about the complications
for children living in remote areas and the State’s experience in reaching
out to these communities. The Delegation said that there was insufficient
data on disabled children. The most common problems were cerebral palsy,
blindness and deafness. Most services were provided by education and
public health.
The Delegation replied that family planning was promoted as both a health
and a responsible parenthood issue and there were attempts to get
support from the Catholic Church. Since the decentralisation of health
services (15 years earlier), local governments managed health. Preventive
health stations in rural areas were linked to bigger centres. The Health
Budget had increased and focused on prevention rather than hospital care.
The Government had a plan to reduce the cost of medicines by 50%,
especially for the poorer sections of society. Breastfeeding legislation was
being reviewed due to a decline in breastfeeding. The infant mortality rate
had decreased over the past two decades and pre-natal care was higher.
Safe water and sanitation was increasing, but it was still difficult to reach
the indigenous population. The Government was assessing the process of
charging hospital fees, as it wanted the poorest people to have free
access.
Education
The Committee noted that the end of compulsory education was 12, while
the minimum age of employment was 15. They asked about the
opportunities (e.g. vocational training) for children between 12 and 15. The
Committee asked that the hidden costs of education be abolished. It also
enquired about the number of children benefiting from the new
programmes, their supervision and the evaluation process. They noted
that only 2/3 complete primary and ½ secondary school and asked about
the Government’s plans to achieve universal completion of primary and
secondary education. The Committee commented on the outdated teaching
techniques and the high student to teacher ratio. They noted that 4% of
Barangays had no access to education and asked if they were indigenous
people.
The Delegation responded that basic education took 10 years. Most
children were multi-lingual. The Lingua Franca pilot programme indicated
that there was a significant positive relationship to students’ levels of
achievement.
Juvenile Justice
The Committee was concerned that the JJA was not passed. The
Committee had disturbing information about children being tortured by the
police and inmates in prisons and detention centres. The Committee
enquired about the training received by the police to deal with youth and
the measures taken against perpetrators of torture. It also asked whether
the JJA would deal with torture.
The Committee presented information about the lack of a clear assessment
of the age of people charged with committing crimes. This resulted in some
minors being detained on death row. The Committee sought clarification on
the death penalty and declared that if those under 18 could receive the
death penalties, the law should be changed. The Delegation responded
that minors sentenced to death were errors, as their ages were not
determined when they were sentenced. To prevent the reoccurrence of
such incidents, all courts determine the age in order to reduce penalties.
The Delegation guaranteed that minors would never be executed.
The Delegation noted improvements for children in conflict with the law.
There were separate detention centres and homes close to their
communities. Dialogue and training were initiated in communities with a
high incidence of criminal activity. The training was for the police, social
workers, judges, children and community. The proposed JJA would rise the
age of criminal responsibility from 9 to 12. Restorative Justice Diversion
Programmes were provided at the Barangay.
Corporal Punishment
The Committee was concerned that corporal punishment, especially in the
home, was still carried out. The Delegation responded that there were
several acts in place against corporal punishment, and workshops had
been organised to disseminate information about the laws and stricter
penalties.
Adoption
The Committee noted that only 34% of births took place in hospital. This
contributed to the falsification of birth registrations and illegal adoptions. It
impacts on the rights of children to have an identity. An additional concern
in the area of adoption was that birth registration could be amended to
suit adoptive parents, thus creating a situation where children lost their
original history.
Street Children
The Committee wanted to know if there were many children living on the
street.
Child Soldiers
The Committee asked about plans for children in armed conflict. The
Delegation said that there were programmes for demobilization and for
children who were not reintegrated. Child soldiers were viewed as victims
rather than offenders. The public attorney’s office was directed to file in the
court for the child’s release on his own recognizance, providing the child
had a family.
Sexual Exploitation of Children
The Committee queried whether pornography was considered a crime and
the Delegation responded that exploiting children through pornography
and the Internet were being filed in congress to make them punishable.
There was also an anti-trafficking blueprint for action in the areas of
protection, prevention, recovery, reintegration, and law enforcement. The
blueprint was established in response to growing incidents of child abuse
and trafficking. Witness protection was available for victims willing to testify.
Indigenous Children
Indigenous communities made up 14% of the population. The Delegation
indicated that the Government had established a council for indigenous
people’s claims. There was an ongoing project in Mindanao addressing
health and education.
Concluding Remarks
The Country Rapporteur thanked the Delegation for its participation and
the fruitful and constructive dialogue. He noted the progress by the State
Party over the last few years in law, education and health. The main
concerns were in the application of laws and certain categories of children,
most importantly those born out of wedlock, in armed conflict, in conflict
with the law as well as victims of sexual exploitation.