Fillipino law changed

How our campaign changed the law for Kids Behind Bars

Fr Shay Cullen used his camera as a weapon when he found Rosie crying for her mother in a jail in Olongapo city. He took her photo and demanded that she be set free - this haunting iconic photograph documents that defining moment. It was a moment of despair to witness the circumstance of the poor and dispossessed, but also a moment of hope with the knowledge that his action secured the child’s release.

Photo of Rosie behind bars

In 2005, Fr Shay Cullen and Danny Smith launched a campaign to prevent the unlawful detention of children jailed in the Philippines and called on the UN to appoint a special rapporteur to protect children imprisoned in adult jails.

A major report entitled Kids Behind Bars Why we must act by Jubilee/the Preda Foundation sparked major coverage and action in the American Congress with stirring testimony from Lord Alton of Liverpool and Fr Shay Cullen.

In the introduction to the report, Danny Smith wrote, ‘It seems an extraordinary contradiction that at the start of the 21st century, a time of unparalleled technological breakthroughs and public awareness of social issues, children can remain in prison, caught in am international blind spot. Held in cramped, overcrowded cells, detained with adults for indefinite periods of time, in conditions some call torture, without legal assistance, prison turns children into criminals instead of turning them from crime. Even the world’s leading authority admits that exact numbers of children in prison just don’t exist.’

Fr Shay helped photojournalist Hazel Thompson and ITV News reporter Chris Rogers to go under cover into the jails in the Philippines and with the publication of a major report entitled Kids Behind Bars Why we must act by Jubilee/the Preda Foundation the story hit the international press.

Hazel Thompson’s photos and reports were carried in publications around the world and won her several photographic awards including first prize for the Observer Hodge competition. One of the judges, Kirsty Walk, from BBC’s Newsnight, said, ‘It’s a remarkable image. It’s something special in journalistic terms as well, because these children are in an adult jail. The fact that places like this exist in the 21st century is extraordinary. The set of pictures captures something of the horrors of a Hieronymus Bosch or a Brueghel painting.’

In August 2005, our campaign was launched on ITV News featuring Chris Rogers’s powerful reports and then broadcast worldwide by CNN.

Later, Jubilee Campaign’s Ann Buwalda helped to organise a hearing in the US Congress that was chaired by Congressman Chris Smith and top politicians promised to take action for Children at Risk. The investigative reports by ITV News were broadcast worldwide and created a stir inside the Philippines, while we bombarded the authorities with postcards and letters.

The Juvenile Justice Bill had been stalled in the political system for several years but after intensive pressure, our campaign to stop ‘kids behind bars’ scored an important victory – the law was changed in the Philippines.

As a result, 70% of criminal cases against children will be dismissed completely. Children will no longer be jailed and kids under 15 years will be sent to youth homes instead. The Bill makes detention the last resort while children will be referred to homes like Preda.

This is a historic moment for our campaign and a turning point in the Filipino juvenile justice system.


August 2005 – Fr Shay Cullen takes Chris Rogers of ITV News and photojournalist Hazel Thompson into Filipino jails. Reports broadcast and published worldwide.
During 2005 – Jubilee Campaign organise hearings in the American Congress. Jubilee campaigners send postcards to the Filipino President about the bill and collect signatures to petition the UN.
Dec 2005 – The Philippine Senate passes the Juvenile Justice Bill by a unanimous vote of 21-0.
Jan 2006 – Jubilee & Preda return to the jails with ITV News. Again TV reports broadcast worldwide.
Feb 2006 – Fr Shay Cullen writes, “The Juvenile Justice Bill has now passed the lower house committee on justice and will be brought to the floor. The Broadcasts on ITV/CCN has brought that about. The 3 broadcasts shown have greatly increased the awareness of some government officials who were watching”
Feb 2006 – The Bill passes the Lower House Committee on Justice.
April 2006 – President Arroyo signed the Bill known as Republic Act 9344.
May 2006 – Fr Shay tells us “After the bill is signed and the implementing rules are made, then we can brace ourselves for an influx of new children. We have to pay the price of success! The kids will not now go to jail but to homes like ours. The government is not building any!”
May 2006 – Fr Shay Cullen identified land in the countryside for a new boy’s home, ideal for a working farm and vocation training centre. Jubilee supporters are helping to build this new facility. Campaign activities must continue, to ensure the Government recognises the necessity to fund these homes.

Watch Hazel Thompson’s award winning photographic investigation inside Filipino jails

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