Event : 10th Charter Anniversary of the Zugbuana Junior Chamber
Venue : Capiz Ballroom, Cebu Country Club
Date : Saturday, 22 September 2001




I am privileged to be here in Cebu and join you tonight as you celebrate your 10th Charter Anniversary with the theme: "Days with the Kids - A Celebration of the Rights of Children."

Your organization has proven itself in the past with various projects that have benefited the youth and protected the rights of the underprivileged.

Despite the promulgation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, we still hear of endless tales of exploitation, human degradation, sexual abuse and other crimes inflicted on our children.

Efforts on the international level supported by various alliances have led the crusade to redress these wrongs. But as UNICEF has declared, the realities before us are enormous, to say the very least:

"Every day that nations fail their moral and legal obligations to realize the rights of children, 30,500 boys and girls under five die mainly of preventable causes, and even more children and young people succumb to illness, neglect, accidents and assaults that did not have to happen.

The crusade that has been mounted in earnest locally by those committed to the welfare of our children have a lot to deal with despite the existence of legislation designed to protect our children and advance their interests.

There remains a lot to be done to ensure that the rights of our children are protected and their welfare advanced. The inherent structures of discrimination and exploitation are very much entrenched in society and the process will continue to thrive due to the inadequacy of legal constraints and the lack of implementation of those tasked to protect the citizenry from harm and abuse.

Ladies and Gentlemen, the decade just past has been described as a decade of undeclared war on women and children.

UNICEF has admitted that, "for all the gains made, the story of the 20th century is also about failed leadership - a lack of vision, an absence of courage, a passive neglect. The number of violations of children's rights that occur around the world every day are staggering."

While the problems surrounding our children are a worldwide phenomenon, we continue to wage our battle in the halls of the Senate, and other proactive undertakings in their behalf. We have identified two priority measures that underscore two burning issues of the day, namely, the trafficking of women and children and anti-child labor practices that are prevalent in our country.

Through legislative initiatives in the Senate, we have moved for the passage of the Anti-Trafficking Act of 2001. What is trafficking to begin with? Allow me to describe it to you. Trafficking is defined as the recruitment, transfer, or deploying of a person, done legally or illegally with or without the victim's consent or knowledge, through fraud, deceit, violence, coercion or intimidation, abuse of position or authority, within or across national borders for purposes of prostitution, work of service, marriage or other similar arrangements, or adoption, characterized by forced labor, slavery or slavery-like practices, sexual exploitation, physical and other forms of abuse or similar acts.

Just last week, I was pleased to have been named as spokesperson for Children's Television, a project by the Southeast Asian Foundation for Children's Television, an organization that has vigorously involved itself in the pursuit of more responsible and relevant children's programming on television.

Television has evolved into the most powerful medium in the history of mankind, and must be used properly in the interest of our children. Let me share some data with you.

A study conducted by the Franck Guggenheim Foundation in 1993 disclosed that there is a significant connection between the amount of violence depicted on American TV and increased aggression among children. The American Medical Association has also warned against the adverse effects of TV-generated violence on child development.

We can only genuinely celebrate the Rights of Children when we have fully removed the specter of abuse and discrimination that still hover over them.

I truly believe that the physical, mental and emotional development of children is necessary for their well-being. Child labor is not unique to the Philippines. It is a global phenomenon. There are an estimated 250 million child laborers all over the world - some as young as eight or nine years old.

It is therefore necessary that the Anti-Child Labor Act moves swiftly in Congress together with the Anti-Trafficking Act, two priority measures, that are key to the improvement of the welfare of our women and children. Their enactment into law will, in no small measure, solidify our country's support for the Convention on the Rights of the Child that require faithful implementation by countries, including ours, that have signed off on this document as evidence of their support.

There are similar important pieces of legislation now pending in Congress that seek more protection for the very young. I refer to the following:

A Children's Welfare Fund, also known as Senate Bill 664, seeks to amend the existing Republic Act 7610 and provide supplementary support to the abandoned, abused, and sexually exploited children. The fund is proposed to be controlled by the Department of Social Welfare and Development. One of its key features is to provide basis education and assist the State in combating child labor. Our evening newscasts carry on a regular basis stories of these forms of abuse, on some cases committed by parents themselves.

Another initiative is the "Children's Environmental Act," that seeks to safeguard the health and environmental protection for children, and other vulnerable populations like pregnant women. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Health Department are the two line agencies tasked to implement the act, once passed into law. One important feature of the bill is the component relating to information dissemination. A list of products safe for children will be disseminated, among others.

 In the list of child-oriented measures in the "Children's Media Protection Act," wherein the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) and the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) shall ensure that no violent programs will be aired from six to ten in the evening. A "Television Violence Ratings Code" is likewise part of the Act that will formulate the rules for rating the level of violence in television programming.

 The Zugbuana Junior Chamber of Cebu as well as other groups who have come here tonight to share their thoughts on the realities that now face us on the rights of children, deserve our accolade and support.

 All of us should come to terms with the gravity of the situation affecting our children in this country, and the rest of the world.

 The key to our success begins here in Cebu, when concerned citizens organize themselves in support of our initiatives to protect our children from further abuse and discrimination, and penalize those who break the law.

 The battle has not dwindled in intensity or dedication. I urge you, therefore, to mobilize you resources and dedicate yourselves in the name of thousands of our children who continue to suffer from the persecution and exploitation of those who abuse them and, in the process, painfully and wrongly deny them their dignity and humanity.  

Thank you and good evening.