Child rights group flags QC ordinance banning minors in public areas

MANILA, Philippines — The Child Rights Network (CRN) is urging the Quezon City government to review its ordinance banning minors from loitering in public areas, saying confinement of 24 hours a day would harm a child’s mental and physical health.

“Rather than a punitive approach, the QC government should strengthen preventive and protective measures, such as, online sessions on covid-19 prevention for those found loitering in public places with no valid purpose/s,” child rights group said in a statement on Monday.

“While we recognize deeply that the raging pandemic requires all citizens to practice stringent health protocols, it should not translate to a situation wherein we confine children 24 hours a day and seven days a week, without even a minute of legroom. This will soon prove to be detrimental to their physical and mental health,” CRN added.

Also, CRN said the local government should consult child rights experts such as the Philippine Pediatric Society, Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, World Health Organization guidelines while reviewing the said ordinance.

The group, meanwhile, said the Quezon City ordinance violates Article 31 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child which states that “States Parties recognize the right of the child to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities appropriate to the age of the child and to participate freely in cultural life and the arts.”

It explained that children’s rights include “accessible space and time for play, free from adult control and management,” and “space and opportunities to play outdoors unaccompanied in a diverse and challenging physical environment, with easy access to supportive adults, when necessary.”

Under the city government’s Child Protection Hours ordinance, individuals aged below 18 years old must remain at home 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Children are banned from loitering in public areas and even commercial establishments such as malls and theaters, even if they are accompanied by a guardian. — Zac Sarao, trainee