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R.A. 9344
Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006

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R.A. 9344
R.A. 9344 is known as the "Juvenile Justice and welfare Act of 2006." It covers the different
stages involving children at risk and children in conflict with the law from prevention to
rehabilitation and reintegration. (sec. 1)

- The State recognizes the vital role of children and youth in nation building and shall promote
and protect their physical, moral, spiritual, intellectual and social wellbeing.

- The State shall protect the best interests of the child through measures that will ensure the
observance of international standards of child protection

- The State likewise recognizes the right of children to assistance, including proper care and
nutrition, and special protection from all forms of neglect, abuse, cruelty, and exploitation, and
other conditions prejudicial to their development.

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✓The administration of the juvenile justice and welfare system

shall take into consideration the cultural and religious
perspectives of the Filipino people, particularly the indigenous
peoples and the Muslims, consistent with the protection of the
rights of children belonging to these communities.
✓The State apply the principles of restorative justice in all its laws,
policies and programs applicable to children in conflict with the
law. (Sec. 2)

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Definition of Master
terms: title style
1. Bail - refers to the security given for the release of the person in
custody of the law, furnished by him/her or a bondsman, to guarantee
his/her appearance before any court. Bail may be given in the form of
corporate security, property bond, cash deposit, or recognizance.
2. Best Interest of the Child - refers to the totality of the circumstances
and conditions which are most congenial to the survival, protection and
feelings security of the child and most encouraging to the child's
physical, psychological and emotional development. It also means the
least detrimental available alternative for safeguarding the growth and
development of the child.
3. Child - refers to a person under the age of eighteen (18) years.
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4. Child Risk - refers to a child who is vulnerable to at the risk of committing criminal offenses because of
personal, family and social circumstances, such as, but not limited to, the following.
a. being exploited including sexually or economically;
b. being abandoned or neglected, and after diligent search and inquiry, the parent or guardian cannot be found;
c. being abused by any person through sexual, physical, psychological, mental, economic or any other means
and the parents or guardian refuse, are unwilling, or unable to provide protection for the child;
d. coming from a dysfunctional or broken family or without a parent or guardian;
e. being out of school;
f. being a street child;
g. being a member of a gang;
h. living in a community with a high level of criminality or drug abuse;
i. living in situations of armed conflict.

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5. Child in Conflict of the Law- refers to a child who is alleged as, accused of, or adjudged
as, having committed an offense under Philippine laws.

6. Community-based Programs - refers to the programs provided in a community setting

developed for purposes of intervention and diversion, as well as rehabilitation of the child in
conflict with the law, for reintegration into his/her family and/or community.

7. Court - refers to a family court or, in places where there are no family courts, any regional
trial court.
8. Deprivation of Liberty - refers to any form of detention or imprisonment, or to the
placement of a child in conflict with the law in a public or private custodial setting, from
which the child in conflict with the law is not permitted to leave at will by order of any
judicial or administrative authority.
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9. Diversion - refers to an alternative, child-appropriate process of determining the
responsibility and treatment of a child in conflict with the law on the basis of
his/her social, cultural, economic, psychological or educational background
without resorting to formal court proceedings.
10. Diversion Programs - refers to the program that the child in conflict with the
law is required to undergo after he/she is found responsible for an offense without
resorting to formal court proceedings.
11. Initial Contact with the Child - refers to the apprehension or taking into
custody of a child in conflict with the law by law enforcement officers or private
citizens. It includes the time when the child alleged to be in conflict with the law
receives a subpoena under Section 3(b) of Rule 112 of the Revised Rules of
Criminal Procedure or summons under Section 6(a) or Section 9(b) of the same
Rule in cases that do not require preliminary investigation or where there is no
necessity to place the child alleged to be in conflict with the law under immediate
custody. 5959
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12. Intervention - refers to a series of activities which are designed to address issues that
caused the child to commit an offense. It may take the form of an individualized treatment
program which may include counseling, skills training, education, and other activities that
will enhance his/her psychologica1, emotional and psycho-social well-being.
13. Juvenile Justice and Welfare System- refers to a system dealing with children at
risk and children in conflict with the law, which provides child-appropriate proceedings,
including programs and services for prevention, diversion, rehabilitation, reintegration,
and aftercare to ensure their normal growth and development.
14. Law Enforcement officer - refers to the person in authority or his/her agent as
defined in article152 of the Revised Penal Code, including a barangay Tanod.
Article 152 - Persons in authority and agents of persons is authority - Who shall
be deemed as such. - In applying the provisions of the preceding and other
articles of this Code, any person directly vested with jurisdiction, whether as an
individual or as a member of some court or governmental corporation, board or
commission, shall be deemed a person in authority. A barrio captain and a
barangay chairman shall also be deemed a person in authority. 6060
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15. Offense Master
- refers to anytitle
act orstyle
the Revised Penal Code, as amended.
omission whether punishable under special laws or

16. Recognizance - refers to an undertaking in lieu of a bond assumed by a parent or

custodian who shall be responsible for the appearance in court of the child in conflict
with the law, when required.

17. Restorative Justice - refers to a principle which requires a process of resolving

conflicts with the maximum involvement of the victim, the offender the community.
It seeks to obtain reparation for the victim; reconciliation of the offender, the
offended and the community; and reassurance to the offender that he/she can be
reintegrated into society. It also enhances public safety by activating the offender, the
victim and the community in prevention strategies.
18. Status Offenses - refers to offenses which discriminate only against a child,
while an adult does suffer any penalty for committing similar acts. These shall
include curfew violations, truancy, parental disobedience, and the like.

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19. "Youth Detention Home" - refers to a 24-hour child-caring institution managed
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accredited Master
local title style
government units (LGUs) and licensed and/or accredited
nongovernment organizations (NGOs) providing short-term residential care for
children in conflict with the law who are awaiting court disposition of their cases or
transfer to other agencies or jurisdiction.
20. "Youth Rehabilitation Center”- refers to a 24-hour residential care facility
managed by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), LGUs,
licensed and/or accredited NGOs monitored by the DSWD, which provides care,
treatment and rehabilitation services for children in conflict with the
law. Rehabilitation services are provided under the guidance of a trained staff where
residents are cared for under a structured therapeutic environment with the end view
of reintegrating them into their families and communities as socially functioning
individuals. Physical mobility of residents of said centers may be restricted pending
court disposition of the charges against them.

21. "Victimless Crimes“- refers to offenses where there is no private offended party.
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 CHAPTER 2 . PRINCIPLES IN THE ADMINISTRATION OF
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JUVENILE Master AND
JUSTICE title style
WELFARE
SEC. 5. Rights of the Child in Conflict with the Law. – Every child in conflict with the law shall have the following rights,
including but not limited to:
a. the right not to be subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment;

b. the right not to be imposed a sentence of capital punishment or life imprisonment, without the possibility of release;

c. the right not to be deprived, unlawfully or arbitrarily, of his/her liberty; detention or imprisonment being a disposition
of last resort, and which shall be for the shortest appropriate period of time;

d. the right to be treated with humanity and respect for the inherent dignity of the person, and in a manner winch
takes into account the needs of a person of his/her age. In particular, a child deprived of liberty shall be separated
from adult offenders at all times. No child shall be detained together with adult offenders. He/She shall be
conveyed separately to or from court. He/She shall await hearing of his/her own case in a separate holding
area. A child in conflict with the law shall have the right to maintain contact with his/her family through
correspondence and visits, save in exceptional circumstances;

e. the right to prompt access to legal and other appropriate assistance, as well as the right to challenge the legality of
the deprivation of his/her liberty before a court or other competent, independent and impartial authority, and to a
prompt decision on such action; 6363
f. the right to bail and recognizance, in appropriate cases;
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g. totoedit
the right testifyMaster title
as a witness style
in his/her own behalf under the rule on examination of a child
witness;
h. the right to have his/her privacy respected fully at all stages of the proceedings;
i. the right to diversion if he/she is qualified and voluntarily avails of the same;
j. the right to be imposed a judgment in proportion to the gravity of the offense where his/her best
interest, the rights of the victim and the needs of society are all taken into consideration by the
court, under the principle of restorative justice;
k. In general, the right to automatic suspension of sentence;
l. the right to probation as an alternative to imprisonment, if qualified under the Probation Law;
m. the right to be free from liability for perjury, concealment or misrepresentation;

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SEC. 6. Minimum Age of Criminal Responsibility. – A child fifteen (15) years of age
or under at the time of the commission of the offense shall be exempt from criminal
liability. However, the child shall be subjected to an intervention program pursuant
to Section 20 of this Act.

A child above fifteen (15) years but below eighteen (18) years of age shall likewise
be exempt from criminal liability and be subjected to an intervention program,
unless he/she has acted with discernment, in which case, such child shall be
subjected to the appropriate proceedings in accordance with this Act.

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SEC. 7. Determination of Age. – The child in conflict with the law shall
enjoy the presumption of minority. He/She shall enjoy all the rights of a
child in conflict with the law until he/she is proven to be eighteen (18)
years old or older. The age of a child may be determined from the
child's birth certificate, baptismal certificate or any other pertinent
documents. In the absence of these documents, age may be based on
information from the child himself/herself, testimonies of other persons,
the physical appearance of the child and other relevant evidence. In
case of doubt as to the age of the child, it shall be resolved in his/her
favor. 6666
STRUCTURES IN THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUVENILE
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JUSTICE ANDMaster title style
WELFARE
SEC. 8. Juvenile Justice and Welfare Council (JJWC). – A Juvenile Justice and Welfare Council (JJWC) is hereby
created and attached to the Department of Justice and placed under its administrative supervision. The JJWC shall
be chaired by an undersecretary of the Department of Social Welfare and Development. It shall ensure the
effective implementation of this Act and coordination among the following agencies:
Council for the Welfare of Children (CWC); g. Philippine National Police (PNP);
a.Department of Education (DepEd); h. Bureau of Jail Management and Penology
(BJMP);
b.Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG);
i. Commission on Human Rights (CHR);
c.Public Attorney's Office (PAO);
j. Technical Education and Skills Development
d.Bureau of Corrections (BUCOR);
Authority (TESDA);
e.Parole and Probation Administration (PPA);
k. National Youth Commission (NYC); and
f.National Bureau of Investigation (NBI);
l. Other institutions focused on juvenile justice
and intervention programs.

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The JJWC shall be composed of representatives, whose ranks shall not be lower than director, to be
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designated by the concerned heads of the following departments or agencies:

a. Department of Justice (DOJ);

b. Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)

c. Council for the Welfare of Children (CWC);

d. Department of Education (DepEd);

e. Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG);

f. Commission on Human Rights (CHR);

g. National Youth Commission (NYC); and

h. Two (2) representatives from NGOs, one to be designated by the Secretary of Justice and the other to be
designated by the Secretary of Social Welfare and Development.

The JJWC shall convene within fifteen (15) days from the effectivity of this Act. The Secretary of Justice and
the Secretary of Social Welfare and Development shall determine the organizational structure and staffing
pattern of the JJWC.

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SEC. 11. Child Rights Center (CRC). - The existing Child Rights Center of the
Commission on Human Rights shall ensure that the status, rights and interests
of children are upheld in accordance with the Constitution and international
instruments on human rights. The CHR shall strengthen the monitoring of
government compliance of all treaty obligations, including the timely and
regular submission of reports before the treaty bodies, as well as the
implementation and dissemination of recommendations and conclusions by
government agencies as well as NGOs and civil society.

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