March 7, 2022 – For child rights advocates, the passage of Republic Act No. 11648 or the "End Child Rape" Law serves as a much-needed beacon of light amid the darkness that was inflicted by the two years of the pandemic.

Child Rights Network (CRN), the largest alliance of organizations pushing for children's rights legislation in the Philippines, lauded the signing of RA 11648 last March 4, 2022, a new law that increases the age for determining the commission of statutory rape from below 12 to below 16 years old. This development means that an adult engaging in sexual activity with a minor below 16 – the new age of sexual consent – will automatically be guilty of rape.

"RA 11648 is the product of the genuine collaboration and unwavering efforts of legislators, policymakers, victim-survivors, young people, civil society advocates, child protection lawyers, social workers, and other practitioners throughout the country. Despite everything that's been transpiring in the past months, our legislators worked tirelessly and selflessly to ensure the safety and well-being of the Filipino children from sexual violence through this measure," CRN Convenor Romeo Dongeto said.

Campaign launch in 2018

CRN officially launched the #ENDChildRape campaign, which seeks to raise the age to determine statutory rape, through a nationwide caravan in 2018 that started in the country's new seat of power, Davao City. Through the technical support of UNICEF, the series of Child Protection Caravan was organized in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, engaging campus students and faculty members, local government units, local media practitioners, and the public.

Since its launch in 2018, CRN's #ENDChildRape campaign has amassed more than 317,000 petition signatures on Change.Org.

In 2021, during CRN’s UNICEF-supported video documentation on the level of children's participation in policymaking, a young person who attended CRN's caravan in 2018 reached out to CRN to share her story. She said that because of the caravan, she felt less alone and was encouraged finally to reveal to her mother her experience of sexual abuse. She had kept the abuse to herself for fear of stigma and discrimination, but the caravan made her realize that there are so many people advocating for the protection of children from sexual violence and that they are pathways to her full recovery. Now, she is an advocate for fellow victim-survivors.

Replacing 90-year-old provisions

CRN noted that the new law amends the archaic provisions of the Revised Penal Code. RA 11648's most important provisions include the clauses that:

• Increase the age to determine statutory rape from below 12 to below 16 years old;

• Equalize the protection for victims of rape, whether a boy or a girl; and

• Adopt the "close in age exemption," which serves to reduce or eliminate the penalty of the crime in cases where the couple's age difference is minor

CRN also believes that the new law will encourage victim-survivors to seek protection from the law.

"This is a victory for the Filipino children. The road to ending child rape begins today. Advocates will work alongside the government to ensure that they can maximize the protection that the new law brings, and the public needs to fully understand the content of the law," Dongeto stressed.

With continued support from UNICEF, CRN will once again embark on a nationwide caravan to raise awareness about the content of the law, as a preventative strategy to ending child rape. The main challenge is to ensure its full implementation.

"We encourage everyone to unite in the common goal of ending child rape in the country. Everyone has a part in fully implementing the new law. We encourage everyone to be vigilant and proactive in reporting cases to the proper authorities as long as confidentiality is strictly observed and consent from the victim is secured," Dongeto concluded. ###

About Child Rights Network

Child Rights Network is the largest alliance of organizations and agencies pushing for children's rights legislation in the Philippines. www.childrightsnetwork.ph

Media Contact: Richard Dy crnphilippines@gmail.com

#ENDChildRape