Good government can protect children from abuse

The brutal and barbaric torture and death of two 15-year-old boys in Tondo, Manila a few weeks ago has shocked the nation with its cruelty. The two boys, Chormel Buenaflor and Carl Justine Banogon, were found after one week, floating in the water at Isla Puting Bato.

Their bodies were covered with dozens of stab wounds consistent with torture. Police say they were possibly victims of gang war, but they were not known to belong to warring gangs. At 15 years of age, they had no criminal record. They were likely victims of a death squad that was trying to extract information from them about suspected drug sellers in their neighborhood.