Philippine lawmakers back bill to jail 12-year-olds

Children as young as 12 years old could be incarcerated under a bill backed by Philippine lawmakers on Wednesday which has been attacked by the UN and rights monitors. Duterte’s allies had originally proposed lowering the “age of criminal liability” to nine, but after mounting outrage the lower House of Representatives raised it to 12 and passed the bill on the second reading.

The current age at which children are held criminally liable in the Philippines is 15. If the Senate approves it the Philippines would join countries like Afghanistan which punish 12-year-old children for criminal acts.