WHEN YOUNGER CHILDREN GO WRONG

"Younger children are starting to become players in the drug trade,"
disclosed Dr. Emma Porio, professor, Ateneo de Manila University as she
presented her study during the recent national conference on "Children in
Drugs: Effective Community-Based Strategies for Prevention and Demand
Reduction."

"Children were involved in drug sales and trafficking as couriers and
watchers. They are usually used in delivering drugs because authorities are
not suspicious of them," Dr. Porio cited.

She stressed that majority of them were only 12 to 15 years of age when
initiated to drugs for the sake of curiosity and experimentation, linked
with search of identity as well.

However, it is a sad fact that people close to them like their families or
relatives, peers or friends, and neighbors who are engaged in drug sales
and trafficking prodded them to use and peddle drugs.

Urban poor communities characterized by congested housing, high levels of
unemployment and underemployment, low levels of education, and inadequate
access to social services are then seen to be haven of dangerous drugs who
nestled their victims, mostly children, to be instruments of drug
trafficking, crimes and even 'flesh trade.'

Most of the children or youth involved in drugs are male, have dropped out
of school, and come from families fraught with tension and problems, the
study revealed.

With this gamut of social problem, Ateneo de Manila University together
with ChildhopeAsia/Families and Communities for Empowerment and
Development, Addictus-Philippines, and Kapatiran-Komunidad People's
Coalition implemented this participatory action-oriented research on
"Working Children in Drugs in the Philippines" to save the shackled lives
and rights of children from drugs.

Supported by the International Labour Organization-International Programme
on the Elimination of Child Labour (ILO-IPEC), the research was not only
initiated in the Philippines but also in Thailand and Indonesia in
September 2002.

According to ILO-IPEC, children involved in drug sales and trafficking are
difficult to trace and identify, as is often the case with other worst
forms of child labor.

The visibility and scatteredness of the children and the sensitivity of the
issue made them use a cautious and process-based approach as Dr. Porio
described "therapeutic action."

"It is a pioneering study not only to study the child but their family and
community as well," she stressed affirming that if there is community
empowerment, there's also family empowerment leading to child empowerment.

"Central participation of children, family and community is needed," Dr.
Porio added.

Drugs, Sex and Crime Are Interrelated

"Drugs and sex are interrelated," Dr. Porio stressed as the 2002 Young
Adult Fertility and Sexuality Study 3 (YAFS 3) disclosed that the
youngsters who indulge in drugs have the 'gnawing desire' for sex.

In fact, the YAFS 3 showed that there was a high incidence of drug use
among females as it almost tripled from one percent in 1974 to 3.2 percent
in 2002. Whilst the drug prevalence among females reached to 19.7 percent
in 2002 from 10.9 percent in 1994.

As these figures increased, Dr. Porio said that paying attention to
reproductive health education is an important act that must be done right
away asserting, "there's a need to mainstream practical reproductive health
education campaigns and activities."

She also disclosed that drugs have parallel effects to the increase of
crime index nowadays as 65 percent of prison inmates are in jail for
drug-related crimes with 70% percent of drug-related cases filed in court.

'When Globalization Went Wrong'

"The whole issue of drugs is the present indication that globalization has
gone wrong," ILO-IPEC Chairman Werner Konrad Blenk averred as the
Philippines became the main transhipment of illegal drugs.

It was in 2002 when the country was identified by the US Department of
State as the main transshipment of illegal drugs to Japan, Korea,
Australia, the United States, Guam and Saipan.

As the manufacturing and laboratory operators continuously create new
shabu-based products, there are about 9 million Filipinos who wallow
themselves in drugs.

Comprising the biggest percentage in an estimated revenue of $5 billion a
year in drug trafficking, shabu is now considered as the domain of the
illegal drug industry as Philippines ranks as third top producer of
methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu in the world by UN Office on Drugs
and Crime (UNODC) this year.

"Let's look more closely on the impact of globalization to shed light on
issues. Urgently, nationally and internationally, these issues must be
addressed," Blenk said as ILO-IPEC have plans to conduct a study about the
impact of globalization in drug issues and problems.

To Recognize the Shackled Rights

With a strong commitment to undertake "immediate and effective measures to
secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labor as
a matter of urgency," International Labor Organization (ILO) together with
its 150 member-countries, including the Philippines, have ratified
Convention 182 which is the fastest pace of ratification in the ILO's
history since 1919.

Asserting that there's a strong link between drug use and other worst forms
of child labor, Dr. Blenk said: "The children in prostitution, children in
pornography, children working on the streets, children in deep-sea fishing,
and children in the construction sector are examples of children known to
be highly vulnerable to drug use.

"Drug use is often the stepping-stone to children's greater involvement in
selling, distribution and production of drugs,"Blenk added.

Meanwhile, Senator Ma. Ana Consuelo "Jamby" Madrigal affirmed that the lack
of law enforcement is a big problem saying, "the laws are very lax."

She said that there must be certain amendments in the Constitution that
would suffice the needs of the present times as Department of Social
Welfare and Development (DSWD) Undersecretary Lulu Balanon defined that
"laws should consider them as children."

"We can't turn our blind-eye for our children. Let's expose the ills
plaguing the children," batted lady solon believing that children are
precious national resources.

"In nation building, emphasis and budget must be given to children'
causes," Madrigal testified.

On the other hand, Undersecretary Balanon explained that to prevent drug
abuse, we should intensify responsible parenthood building resiliency on
family as she called on the attention of parents to be sensitive enough to
the needs of their children.

"There were very few initiative for our children. The government should
give the full support but then the government couldn't do it alone, they
need support system," Balanon stressed.