SENATOR Richard Gordon on Monday urged his colleagues to pass the measure defining the crime of statutory rape and other acts of sexual abuse.

“Keeping 12 as the age of consent endangers children and makes them more vulnerable to sexual abuse. The Congress must uphold the right of every child to freedom from sexual exploitation that’s why we introduce Senate Bill 2332,” Gordon said.

The chairman of the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights pointed out that the Philippines has the lowest age of sexual consent in Asia and one of the lowest in the world.

“The rape statistics in our country that involved children also remain troubling, so, we strongly support the increase of age of sexual consent as thousands of children are robbed of their youth,” Gordon stressed.

The bill also gives equal protection to boys.

“The sexual orientation of the offender is of no importance as we find that perpetrators of sexual abuse against boys are given much lesser sentences than those found guilty of raping girls,” the senator said.

The Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, where the Philippines is a signatory, recommended to the government to increase the age of sexual consent from 12 to 16 years old.

“We are hoping to pass amendments with regard to child sexual abuse as this daunting task will help improve child protection in our country,” Gordon said.