Sunteți pe pagina 1din 2

SAMAHAN CONDEMNS THE MURDER OF

MICHELLE LUBATON
The Samahan ng mga Mag-aaral ng Pamantasan ng Ateneo de Davao
(SAMAHAN) mourns over the tragic death of fellow Atenean, Michelle Aaron
Lubaton, who was brutally stabbed to death by a minor.

Michelle sustained seven stab wounds inside her room at GKMK Apartment in
Ponce Street, Barangay 28-C Poblacion, Davao City at around 2:30am on 12 April
2011. She was declared dead on arrival at the Southern Philippines Medical
Center.

The suspect, 17, is now under the custody of the Department of Social Welfare and
Development (DSWD). Under the Republic Act 9344 or the Juvenile Justice and
Welfare Act of 2006, “a child above 15 years but below 18 years of age shall be
exempt from criminal liability and be subjected to an intervention program, unless
he/she has acted with discernment, in which such child shall be subjected to the
appropriate proceedings in accordance with this Act (Chapter 2, Section 6).”

While we respect the noble intentions of Sen. Francis Pangilinan who authored the
Act together with the rest of the lawmakers of the 13th Congress of the Philippines
who passed it into a law to protect the welfare of the Filipino child, the RA 9344
has become a saving grace for youth offenders who abuse their immunity from
any criminal liability. Even if they are not exempted from civil liability, they do not
have the financial capacity to compensate their victims. Most often, these youth
offenders have nothing in life which lead them to commit petty crimes. Moreover,
the law does not clearly state who is held liable for cases like that of Michelle’s
offender. The policemen stand helpless.

But for such a heinous crime as murder, an intervention program by DSWD might
be too insignificant as a consequence to the criminal. Do our local intervention
programs prove to be effective in rehabilitating juvenile delinquents? How about
those repeat offenders with a history of crimes committed in the past? Will they
continue to enjoy their blanket of protection courtesy of RA 9344?

We urge Sen. Pangilinan and the members of the 16th Congress of the Philippines
to amend the RA 9344 to make restorative justice real and not just on paper in
order to bring justice to the victims of youth offenders. Certainly, we do not wish
to see more victims of crimes, no matter how petty or heinous, committed by
juvenile delinquents who can easily run away from their criminal and civil
liabilities.

We also ask the members of the 16th City Council of Davao to pass a local
ordinance enforcing stricter safety and security measures on student dormitories
and apartments within the city. A large number of college students in the city stay
in such places for accessibility and proximity to schools. Hence, the City
Government of Davao must ensure that such business establishments provide
adequate security to student residents. There is no place in this city for such
violence. Let Michelle’s case be the last.

Now that the suspect is in the hands of the authorities, we are one step closer to
achieving justice for Michelle. We call on the Department of Justice and the
Department of Social Welfare and Development to do all that is necessary for
the speedy delivery of justice to the family of Michelle and to the entire
community who cares for Michelle.

We condemn and deplore the murder of our fellow Atenean. For someone who
loves her family very much, is a true friend to many and is a diligent student, she
does not deserve such painful death, all the more the deprivation of justice she is
due. We pray that her soul may finally rest in peace with the Creator.

On behalf of the SAMAHAN,

SAMAHAN CENTRAL BOARD 2011-2012

S-ar putea să vă placă și