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Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has signed into law a bill that raises the age of consent from 12 to 16 years old in a move aimed at protecting minors from sexual abuse and rape.
According to the gender-neutral bill, any adult having sex with anyone under 16 years old would be guilty of statutory rape.
Statutory rape automatically makes the offender guilty by reason of the victim’s age, which makes them incapable of giving consent.
“By raising the age to 16, it means those below 16 years of age are not yet capable of giving their consent when they have sex. Thus, the presumption is that the child is raped,” lawyer Wesley Young told UCA News.
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