Friday, November 24, 2006 Senator pushes law on juvenile justice By Stephen Capillas
SENATOR Francis Pangilinan pushed for the full implementation of the juvenile justice system, which he said, would go a long way towards administering rehabilitation and removal of youth offenders from the street.
He said the juvenile justice system law would help reform and not merely prosecute the youthful offenders, who grow up to be hardened criminals due to their prison experiences.
The program is in line with the country's adherence to a recently launched United Nations (UN) program for the reformation and rehabilitation of youthful offenders.
The senator said while the program doesn't allow the youthful offenders to escape prosecution for their criminal acts, it does provide a way for them to avoid being scarred emotionally and psychologically for life.
"The program is for youthful offenders aged 16 years old and below. For those 17 to 18 years old, they would be still be penalized but they would be sent to a rehabilitation center and not be mixed in with the older criminals," Pangilinan said.
For those committing heinous crimes like murder, Pangilinan said the penalties to be imposed would depend largely on the victim's family.
"But then again all steps would be taken to ensure that the youthful offenders won't become hardened criminals," the senator said.
