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Should Philippines lower criminal liability age after deadly Tacloban school shooting?
Gabriela Women’s Party Rep. Sarah Elago warned such move would roll back hard-won child rights protections and criminalise Filipino children instead of addressing the conditions that put them at risk
- PUBLISHED: Thu 25 Jun 2026, 1:18 PM UPDATED: Thu 25 Jun 2026, 3:01 PM
The deadly shooting by teenagers inside a school in central Philippines on Monday that killed three high school students has revived the country’s debate on its minimum age of criminal liability (MACL). It currently stands at 15 years old, and several personalities and sectors want it significantly lowered.
Ironically, the earliest and loudest voice for the proposal is a criminal convict found guilty for a gun-related offense in 1992. Senator Robinhood Padilla – out of jail because of an absolute presidential pardon – wants the country’s MACL lowered from its current number (15) to mere 10 years old.
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Padilla’s proposal has gained traction as parents of the victims in the June 22 school shooting in Tacloban City has demanded jail time for the 14- and 15-year old alleged perpetrators. Knee-jerk reactions from both the government and portions of the population fuel the argument.
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After ignoring student safety and welfare for the longest time, the Philippine government has implemented heightened security protocols in many schools across the country. The Philippine National Police has deployed armed officers in and around schools since Tuesday.
'Not appropriate response'
The move is criticised by child rights advocate and former Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) undersecretary for protective operations and programs group, Mae Fe Ancheta-Templa, who said police presence near schools is not an appropriate response to the school shooting.
“It is never, I should say, a real solution to the anti-social behavior of young people,” Templa said, adding: “Targeting school children for police operations only normalises the punitive orientation on children's behavioral health issues.”
Some schools also required students to undergo bag inspections before entering, causing long queues at gates and delaying classes.
Senator Padilla’s revival of his old proposal to lower the age of criminal liability of child offenders has forced the author of the current Philippine’s Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act (JJWA) to explain that the Tacloban school shooting perpetrators shall still be held under custody.
Senator Francis Pangilinan said that while the 14-year old has no criminal liability under the law, the 15-year old co-perpetrator will face criminal prosecution. The younger shooter will also be held under custody by the DSWD to undergo rehabilitation.
Padilla’s opportunistic use of the school shooting to propose lowering the age of criminal liability anew worries Templa. “The lowering of the MACL has never resulted in lower crime rates based on the Philippine experience and the same is true in other countries,” she said.
In fact, the passage of mandating criminal liability at 15 years old has resulted in lowering of incidents of children in conflict with the law (CICL). In 2006 when the law was passed, a total of 52,576 children were in detention or under custodial setting. Between 2012 and 2015, the Philippine police recorded a vastly reduced total of 27,823 incidents of CICL, Templa pointed out.
The expert, citing police data, also revealed that adults commit 98 per cent of all reported crimes in the country while only 2 per cent are committed by children. Of these, only 8 pe cent involved serious crimes while 92 per cent are categorised as non-serious.”
Marcos open to lowering age of liability
Meanwhile, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. expressed openness to discussions about amending JJWA, a move swiftly criticized by a member of the Philippine Congress.
Gabriela Women’s Party Representative Sarah Elago warned that such a move would roll back hard-won child rights protections and further criminalize Filipino children instead of addressing the conditions that place them at risk.
"Children must not be made targets of policies that prioritize punishment while the government ignores their social conditions and problems,” she said.
“The JJWA recognises that children in conflict with the law require intervention, rehabilitation, and support—not punishment as if they were fully mature adults,” Elago underscored.
The deputy minority leader of the House of Representatives emphasised that the debate should go beyond questions of age and criminal liability. "The question is not just age of discernment. The question is what kind of society teaches children that violence against others is acceptable? What kind of society shapes the mindset that bullying, violence, and irresponsibility are normal? Children do not learn these things in isolation from their environment. They see it in a society that normalizes violence and impunity," Elago said.
What must be done
Instead of amending the law, Templa supports strengthening its implementation through financial, logistical, and social service support. “Structures of support such as those indicated in the Early Years Act (EYA) as an enhancement of the early childhood care and development programs and services are important in the prevention of anti-social behavior in young people,” she said.
Templa added parents and communities have the vital role to hone children as responsible citizens. “Parents are the first educators in teaching children to discern and learn acceptable ways of thinking and doing. Parenting needs scientific ways of raising up young ones to be respectful,” she said.
She also noted that local government units, as first responders to cases of CICL, need to hire and ensure proper training to social workers to enable them to handle cases and appropriately carry out interventions to address the 'bad' behavior of children.
“Full and appropriate implementation of the law by duty-bearers, especially the local government units, is the urgent call. Equally important is for national lawmakers to urge local councils to issue enabling ordinances that increase their capacities to mobilize resources towards realising the intent of the law,” Templa underscored.
The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child believes that 14 years is the absolute minimum acceptable age for criminal liability while any age lower than 12 is totally unacceptable.