Philippines debates response to deadly Zamboanga school shooting

Following a deadly shooting at Ateneo de Zamboanga University that killed two students, Philippine officials and experts are debating the appropriate response to rising school violence. House Committee Chairman Rolando Valeriano has urged the Philippine National Police to launch a nationwide firearms safety and compliance campaign, focusing on proper storage and registration among licensed owners.

Psychiatrist Dr. Randy Dellosa warned of potential copycat incidents, advising schools and parents to monitor behavioral red flags and “leakage of intention” online. While the shooter had played Counter-Strike, Dellosa cautioned against blaming gaming alone, noting that the weapons used in the Zamboanga attack belonged to the shooter’s father, a Bureau of Customs official.

In response to the violence, Roblox has introduced facial age estimation and expanded parental controls to limit access to inappropriate content. Meanwhile, the Educators Forum for Development-Mindanao (EFD-M) has criticized the government’s security-heavy approach, arguing that increased police presence fails to address root causes such as mental health, social environments, and the digitalization of children’s lives. The group has proposed an independent commission of educators and social scientists to investigate the underlying drivers of campus violence.