AN ORDINANCE for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labor and Stronger Protection for the Working

Child. Author: Ma. Victoria J. Jansol Member Sangguniang Bayan Mambajao EXPLANATORY NOTE: In response to the passage of Republic Act No. 7610, An Act Providing Stronger Deterrence and Special Protection Against Child Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination in June 17, 1992 Department of Interior and Local Government Memorandum No. 2011-133: Formulation of Local Legislation to Address Child Labor and Integration of Anti-Child Labor Initiatives in the Local Development Plans and Programs and in reference to the provisions of Special Committee for the Protection of Children (SCPC) created in 1995 through Executive Order No.275, further defining the law into a more concrete and comprehensive program for the welfare of children, the Sangguniang Bayan of Mambajao, in effect, adapts all provisions of the Act into Municipal Ordinance to give it more authority and command in the locality. Pursuant to the aforementioned Act, this ordinance shall identify more clearly activities which shall respond to the local need of the program based on actual and recent conditions of the municipality. In the Philippines where the poverty level is among the worst in Southeast Asia, child labor is along with the highest in practice. In the most recent study on Child Labor it was determined that this exploitative source is preferred because it is cheap and devoid from the protection of Labor Unions and similar securities as required by law. In the hard competition of employment, and despite of the fact that many workers of legal age would rather forego with the legal conditions that ensures the delivery of the lawful privileges given to workers, child labor becomes a target of abusive source for unscrupulous consumer of this good because it is the most resilient source of illegitimate conditions that is most profitable to exploiters. It is observed that many local families have utilized their minor children as additional work force in the family livelihood activities such as fishing, farming and other similar activities, depriving these minors hours at school due to absences and in worst cases not enrolling these minors in school, provisions of applicable laws and sanctions are furnished to address these issues. BE IT ORDAINED; Section I. Title

This Ordinance shall be known as Municipal Ordinance for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labor and Stronger Protection for the Working Child. Section II. Declaration of Policy. It is the policy of this municipality to provide children with all the necessary laws and programs for their protection against child labor, exploitation and discrimination. Section III. Scope
1. All regular and temporary residents in all barangays in the municipality of

Mambajao, below eighteen (18) years old. 2. Regular and temporary residents in all barangays in the municipality of Mambajao, physically and or mentally incapable of exercising the capabilities of the age of emancipation

Section IV. Provisions

1. Children without consideration to financial, physical, mental capacities, in school

age, except of conditions defined in limitations must be accorded with an equal treatment to access to education, in all government established pre-school, primary and elementary schools and high schools and vocational courses.
2. Parents and guardians of these minors are mandated responsible for the discharge

of this accountability of providing minor members of a household the pursuit and attainment of their basic education.
3. The Department of Education and in-charged in the locality shall exercise and

exert all efforts and means to accommodate this need of children. Parents, Legal Guardians, the local government unit of the municipality of Mambajao and all barangays within the municipality are mandated to ensure that the welfare and protection of children in its jurisdiction are being implemented.
4. The Local Government Unit of Mambajao thru the MSWD shall undertake a

yearly report to be called Minor Residents Report census. Included on the data report will be number of children victims of child labor.
5.

In the above Report should be remarked the working condition of the employed children and children defined as engaged in child labor. the exercise of any chore in form of employment, and in any other form within the definition of child labor in this ordinance.

6. Children shall be provided with all the precautionary provisions of safeguard in

7. In conditions where working students and other children has to take regular

chores as paid work, cooperated labor in cases of family enterprise, family livelihood, as fishing and farming are necessitated, as a vital means to family economy, the minors safety must be given the highest consideration in contrast to economic concern. 8. Other provisions of RA 9231 are herein construed and applied with and in furtherance of this Ordinance and will be the main reference in the interpretation of laws for the protection of rights and benefits of minors in this municipality. Section V. Limitation/Prohibitions 1. No child shall be deprived of education or be forced to drop out of school for reasons of employment, paid or unpaid work, or being utilized to undertake permanent, semipermanent, or regular chores, by any persons that has influence of the minor.

2. No child Fifteen (15) years and below should be employed in full time terms specifically in form which requires the minor to employ physical strength to execute his or her duties and assignments of his employment as household help, bakery helpers, transport conductors, grocery helpers and other similar service.

3. No child shall work in the following conditions which, by its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out, is hazardous or likely to be harmful to the health, safety or morals of children, such that it: a) Debases, degrades or demeans the intrinsic worth and dignity of a child as a human being; or

b) Exposes the child to physical, emotional or sexual abuse, or is found to be highly stressful psychologically or may prejudice morals; or c) Is performed underground, underwater or at dangerous heights; or d) Involves the use of dangerous machinery, equipment and tools such as powerdriven or explosive power-actuated tools; or e) Exposes the child to physical danger such as, but not limited to the dangerous feats of balancing, physical strength or contortion, or which requires the manual transport of heavy loads; or f) Is performed in an unhealthy environment exposing the child to hazardous working conditions, elements, substances, co-agents or processes involving chemical exposures, radiation, fire, flammable substances, noxious components and the like, or to extreme temperatures, noise levels, or vibrations; or g) Exposes the child to biological agents such as bacteria, fungi, viruses, protozoans, nematodes and other parasites; or i) Involves the manufacture or handling of explosives and other pyrotechnic products. 3. A child below fifteen (15) years of age may be allowed to work for not more than twenty (20) hours a week: Provided, That the work shall not be more than four (4) hours at any given day; 4. A child fifteen (15) years of age but below eighteen (18) shall not be allowed to work for more than eight (8) hours a day, and in no case beyond forty (40) hours a week. 5. No minor 15 years old below shall engage in any form of employment except when such form of employment is undertaken as a family livelihood, provided further that all forms of safety, health and moral guardianship were undertaken, and that the childs educational pursuits are not hindered and sacrificed.

6. Minors 15 years of age but below 18 years old shall not engage in any form of employment that requires him or her to work for more than 8 hours a day or more than 40 hours in one week. Nor he shall be engaging in any such form if it requires him or her to drop out of school.

7. No child below fifteen (15) years of age shall be allowed to work between eight o'clock in the evening and six o'clock in the morning of the following day and no child fifteen (15) years of age but below eighteen (18) shall be allowed to work between ten o'clock in the evening and six o'clock in the morning of the following day. Section VI. Definition of Terms. As used in this Ordinance: the following are defined to establish a common point of reference and for better understanding. Child Minor, male or female below eighteen years of age, or any person physically or mentally incapable of discharging the mental and physical capacities of an adult or person in age of emancipation.

Age of Emancipation a person eighteen years and above and mentally capable of discharging the capacities of an adult. Minor - male or female 18 years and below

Parent - natural or legal mother or father of the children Guardian - assigned and of legal age responsible caretaker of minors

Basic Education - pre-school, primary, elementary and high school education Child labor 1. Work situations where children are compelled to work on a regular basis to earn a living for themselves and their families, and as a result are disadvantaged educationally and socially; where children work in conditions that are exploitative and damaging to their health and to their physical and mental development; where children are separated from their families, often deprived of educational and training opportunities; where children are forced to lead prematurely adult lives. 2. Paid work assigned to minors as a means of livelihood, Exploitation - direct or indirect transgression of rights and benefits of minors Abuse unscrupulous use of physical, mental or any superior influence over a minor Debase work situations or chores where children will be exposed to humiliation, shame, and dishonor as mendicancy Degrade work situations that corrupt the morals and values of the child as bar/videoke assistant and other similar enterprise or workplace. Demean work situations that lowers the morale and self-respect of the child worker. Minor Residents Report census on minor constituents of their barangay which contain data of children in school age bracket enrolled, not enrolled, sick children that needs therapeutic treatment like children sick with tuberculosis and other chronic diseases that requires therapeutic treatment, employed children. Remarks on working conditions of the employed children and children defined as engaged in child labor. This report shall be submitted to the Municipal Interior and Local Government Office and Municipal Social Welfare and Development for appropriate action. Radiation Emission and propagation and emission of energy in the form of rays or waves.A stream of particles or electromagnetic waves emitted by the atoms and molecules of a radioactive substance as a result of nuclear decay. The act of exposing or the condition of being exposed to such energy. Flammable substances -substances that are readily ignited as gasoline, alcohol, and pyrotechnics ingredients. Noxious components lethal, injurious, deadly venomous elements or compounds Section VII. Legal Basis 1. RA 9231
2. Republic Act No. 7610

3. RA 9155 also known as Governance of Basic Education Act of 2001 and 4. RA 6655 the Free Secondary Education Act Section VIII. Penalties for Violation

1. First Offence a. Individual - Fine of Php1500.00 b. Business Establishment Fine of Php 1,500.00 and warning for revocation of Mayors Permit to Operate Business c. Foreigner with Temporary Residence Fine of Php2,500.00 and warning to be declared Persona non Grata

2. Second Offence a. Individual - Fine of Php2,000.00 b. Business Establishment Fine of Php 2,000.00 and warning for revocation of Mayors Permit to Operate Business Sustained c. Foreigner with Temporary Residence Fine of Php2,500.00 and warning to be declared Persona non Grata sustained 3. Third offence a. Individual - Fine of Php2,500.00 b. Business Establishment Fine of Php 2,500.00 and revocation of Mayors Permit to Operate Business c. Foreigner with Temporary Residence Fine of Php2,500.00 and declaration through Municipal Resolution as Persona non Grata d. Third offenders and violators of this ordinance shall be penalized by imprisonment not to exceed six (6) months as the court rules. Section IX. Separability Clause

If any provision of this Act is declared invalid or unconstitutional, the validity of the remaining provisions hereof shall remain in full force and effect.

Section X. Repealing Clause. All laws, decrees, or rules inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly. Section XI. Effectivity. This Ordinance shall take effect fifteen (15) days from the date of its approval.

As a concrete expression of that commitment, the Philippine Congress enacted on 17 June1992 Republic Act No. 7610, An Act Providing Stronger Deterrence and Special Protection Against Child Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination. To monitor the enforcement of RA 7610, the Special Committee for the Protection of Children (SCPC) was created in 1995 through Executive Order No.275. Chaired by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and co-chaired by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the Committee has also been tasked to initiate and coordinate the formulation of a Comprehensive Programme on Child Protection (CPCP). The first programme document was issued by the Committee in 2001. After five years, the programme has to reviewed, revised, and updated in light of the following developments: the increasing numbers of Filipino children who have become vulnerable to abuse, neglect, exploitation and violence; the need to address the growing complexity of child protection issues in our country as raised by the Committee on the Rights of the Child in its 2005 Concluding Observations on the Second Philippine Country Report on CRC implementation; and the need to strengthen the links between and among the CPCP, the National Plan of Action for Children (NPAC), 2005-2010 and the global goals on children and women articulated in the outcome document of the UN General Assembly Special Session on Children A World Fit for Children and the Millennium Development Goals. This revised and updated Comprehensive Programmed on Child Protection covering the period 2006-2010 is a companion document to the National Plan of Action for Children and is an elaboration of the NPAC Child Protection Component. Its major goal is to build a protective and caring environment for Filipino children who are at risk, disadvantaged and vulnerable to abuse, neglect, exploitation and violence. By creating a protective and caring environment for children, we go beyond piecemeal and fragmented responses and move towards a more integrated child protection programmed that will allow us to address the different levels of causes immediate, underlying, and basic or root of

abuse, neglect, exploitation and violence against children. Instead of just addressing a specific category of children in need of special protection (CNSP) such as child labor, street children, children in conflict with the law, and children involved in armed conflict, among others, we will focus on cross-cutting strategies and interventions that will address all CNSP categories. Such cross-cutting strategies and interventions will be institutionalized into existing structures at various levels and institutional settings: family, school, church or faith community, mass media, justice system, local community or barangay, city, municipality, province, regional and national bodies thus enhancing the protective and caring environment for children. The cross-cutting strategies and interventions can be grouped into the following: (a) preventive actions and early interventions, (b) rescue, psychosocial recovery and social reintegration, and (c) legal and judicial protection measures. The revised and updated CPCP calls for a renewed shift from a needs-based to a rights-based approach to advocacy and programming. As already indicated earlier, consequent to CRC ratification, the government, non-government organizations, families and communities, religious communities and faith-based organizations, and the rest of civil society are obliged to respect, protect, facilitate, and fulfill the rights of children. In terms of child protection, it is no longer enough to address the immediate causes and risk factors that make children vulnerable to abuse, neglect, exploitation and violence. It also requires actions that will tackle the root causes that have given rise, and will continue to give rise, to the especially difficult circumstances that lead to serious violations and non-fulfillment of children's rights. In sum, the CPCP espouses vigorous advocacy and public consciousness-raising, capacity building, alliance building, family and community participation and empowerment, civil society mobilization and resource generation towards a broad-based response akin to a social movement for the promotion, protection and fulfillment of the rights of children, particularly those in need of special protection measures. Building on the experiences and lessons learned in implementing the CPCP from 2001-2005, this revised and updated programmed emphasizes the strategic importance of coordinated actions at the family, community and LGU levels backed up by responsive laws, policies, structures and systems at the regional and national levels in responding to various instances of child abuse, neglect, exploitation and violence. ESPERANZA I. CABRAL, M.D Secretary of Social Welfare & Development Chair, Special Committee for the Co-Chair, Special Committee for the Protection of Children Protection of Children

Education is a major preventive intervention against the various forms of abuse and exploitation such as child labor, trafficking, commercial sexual exploitation, children going to the streets, children's involvement in armed conflict, substance abuse and other risky behaviors. In this light, the DepEd must review its educational policies and procedures and see whether or not these are relevant and responsive to the unique needs and circumstances of CNSP. For instance, are policies on admission, school fees, and classroom schedule, among others, biased and discriminatory against street children, working children, IP children, and children with disability? Are CNSP data being integrated into DepEd's management information system (MIS) and student tracking system (STS) as basis for understanding CNSP and for monitoring children at risk and potential drop-outs? In short, as part of its Child-Friendly School System (CFSS) initiative, DepEd should aim to get all children to school and have them stay in school until they complete at least high school education. Alternatively, for children who are out of school, DepEd, in partnership with NGOs, FBOs and the barangays should maximize the ALS modules to reach a greater number of CNSP and other children at risk. More specifically, schools should continue to integrate child rights education and life skills

education into the basic education curriculum. Child rights and life skills education will help equip children and young people with the appropriate information, knowledge and skills so that they can guard themselves against forces of abuse, exploitation and violence; say no to drugs and other risky behavior; and say yes to a positive and healthy lifestyle. Life skills education can contribute to building self-esteem and psychosocial competence among children and young people and at the same time enhance their capacities for participation and their own protection. Moreover, schools must strengthen their guidance and counseling programmes and services particularly for intermediate and high school students. Role