Philippine bishops express concern over increasing crime rate

Catholic bishops in the Philippines have expressed concern over the country's growing crime rate after a spate of child abductions in Batangas province over the past two weeks.  "A crime is an offense against human dignity, so we should always be concerned about it," said Archbishop Socrates Villegas of Lingayen-Dagupan, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines.   Archbishop Ramon Arguelles of Batangas sent a text message on Sept. 4 to parents and school administrators in his archdiocese warning against the "serious danger" of child abductions.  "The news of kidnapping of children in the province ... is very alarming," Archbishop Arguelles said in his message. "Please alert everyone especially parents, elders and schools about this serious danger," he added. 

Authorities have already increased police patrols around schools in the province following the reported abductions. Philippines media has reported that at least 10 children have been abducted in recent weeks.

Batangas police spokeswoman Hazel Luma-ang said these patrols would continue until the missing children cases are solved.  Archbishop Arguelles called on authorities to immediately act, adding that the children might be victims of sex or organ trade syndicates.  The Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines supported the bishop's call, urging local governments to ensure the security of the local communities and the safety of their children.

Archbishop Villegas, meanwhile, reminded the public that the fight against crime should be a concern for all and not just the police.  "Fighting crime is not just the duty of one sector of society. Fighting crime is the duty of every human being," the prelate said data from the Philippine National Police show that a total of 885,445 crimes were reported from January to June this year.  Some 603,085 incidents were recorded over the same period last year.  (Source: UCAN)