REPORTING & RESPONDING MECHANISM

ON CHILD ABUSE, NEGLECT AND

EXPLOITATION
 What is a child?
 refers to person below eighteen (18) years of age.

 those over but are unable to fully take care of themselves

or protect themselves from abuse, neglect, cruelty,
exploitation or discrimination because of a physical or
mental disability or condition.
 Minimum Age of Sexual Consent
Objective: To protect adolescents from sexual abuse and from the consequences of early
sexual activity on their rights and development.

 Age of sexual consent under Philippine Law is pegged at the age of twelve (12) as
provided for in the Revised Penal Code (RA 3815) as amended by the Anti-Rape Law
(RA 8353) where in statutory rape happens when a man committed a carnal
knowledge with a person under twelve (12) years of age even without these
circumstances such as use of force, threat, or intimidation; depriving of reason or
otherwise unconscious; use of fraudulent machination or grave abuse of authority.
 Setting Minimum Age in Marriage
Objective: To protect adolescents from harm.

 Family Code provides that any male or female at the age of eighteen (18) years
or upwards not under any of the impediments may contract marriage.
 Requires parental consent until the age of twenty-one for those contracting
marriage which renders no difference between girls and boys ages of marriage
without parental consent
 Provision of Muslim Personal Laws (Shariah Law) Article 16. Capacity to
contract marriage. --- (1) Any Muslim male at least fifteen years of age and any
Muslim female of the age of puberty or upwards and not suffering from any
impediment under the provisions of this Code may contract marriage. A female is
presumed to have attained puberty upon reaching the age of fifteen.
 Provision of the Indigenous People’s Rights Act (RA 8371) Section 29. Protection of Indigenous
Culture, Traditions and Institutions. --- The State shall respect, recognize and protect the right of
ICCs/IPs to preserve and protect their culture, traditions and institutions.

 Indigenous communities are observed to have practiced “arranged marriages”.

 The Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006 (RA 9344) has raised the minimum age of criminal
responsibility in the country from nine (9) to fifteen (15) years. This provides that “a child fifteen (15)
years of age or under at the time of the commission of the offense shall be exempt from criminal liability.

 “a child above fifteen (15) but below eighteen (18) years of age shall likewise be exempted from criminal
liability and be subjected to an intervention programme, unless he/she acted with discernment, in which
case, such child shall be subjected to the appropriate proceedings in accordance with this Act.”
 What is Child Abuse?
 Maltreatment of a child by infliction of physical or psychological injury or cruelty to, or
neglect, sexual abuse or exploitation of a child whether habitual or not. (section 2 (b) of
the Rules and Regulations on Reporting and Investigation of Child Abuse Cases)
 Psychological and physical abuse, neglect, cruelty, sexual abuse, and emotional
maltreatment;
 Any act by deeds or words which debases, degrades or demeans the intrinsic worth and
dignity of a child as a human being;
 Unreasonable deprivation of his basic needs for survival, such as food and shelter;
 Failure to immediately give medical treatment to an injured child resulting in serious
impairment of his growth and development or in his permanent incapacity or death. (Sec.
3(b) R.A. 7610)
Manifestations or indicators to
look for that shall prompt us to
suspect child maltreatment or
abuse.
 Physical Abuse
 Sexual Abuse
 Emotional and Behavioral Indicators of Child Sexual
Abuse
 Neglect – failure of provision and failure of supervision
 Psychological/Emotional Abuse
 Behavioral signs in Children
 Who abuses a child?
 Why do parents/adults abuse children?
 Who are the mandated reporters-required by law to report child abuse
cases?
 Can then person named be charged criminally if they do not report a child
abuse case?
 Am I legally protected when I report a suspected case of Child Abuse?
 Who can file a complaint for child abuse?
 Where should a complaint for child abuse be filed?
 What are the services available to victims of child abuse?
 Case Management of
Child Victims of Abuse,
Neglect, and
Exploitation
 Child Victims
 Abused – physical, sexual, emotional and psychological abuse;
 Neglected – abandoned and/or deliberately unattended by their
parent/s or guardians.
 Exploited – commercial sexual exploitation (prostitution and
pornography), economic exploitation (child labor), trafficked
children and other exploitative situations.
The flowchart on the Management of Cases of Child Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation.
 CASE MANAGEMENT
Holistic Care
Rights-Based and Life-Cycle Approach
Gender-Sensitive Approach
Multi-disciplinary Approach
 The Mandatory Reporters
1. The following are the mandated to make a report, either orally or in writing, to
DSWD/LSWDO within forty-eight hours (48), the examination and/or treatment of
a child who appears to have suffered from abuse:
 Head of any public or private hospital, medical clinic and similar institutions,
and
 Attending physician or nurse

2. Failure to report a child abuse shall be punishable with a fine of not more than two
thousand pesos (P 2,000.00) or as may be determined in the future by a court with
jurisdiction.