PH schools push for use of transparent bags on campus for easier inspection
At least five schools in the Philippines are urging the use of transparent school bags for students and personnel on campus for easier inspection following two incidents of school shootings in the country in the span of three months.
In Mindanao, Holy Child Central Colleges and Santo Niño College Foundation in South Cotabato, as well as Santo Niño College Foundation in Davao, are asking their students, faculty, and staff to use transparent bags on campus to make it easier for security to check for concealed weapons.
According to the Philippine News Agency, San Jose National High School in Tacloban implemented the same measure on Aug. 17.
On Facebook over the weekend, Holy Child Central Colleges wrote that its community "is already embracing the use of transparent bags as part of the institution's commitment to maintaining a safer and more secure campus."
"From students to faculty and staff, everyone plays a part in keeping our community safe. Together, let’s make safety a shared commitment," the statement read.
The school's recommended bags ranged from canvas and mesh bags to see-through plastic backpacks.
In its memo released on Aug. 19, Santo Nino College Foundation invited all its students, teachers, and staff to use transparent bags as much as possible.
"Makakatulong ang mga transparent na bag upang masuportahan ang ating sama-samang pangako na mapanatili ang isang ligtas at mapayapang lugar," the school wrote in a Facebook post.
An infographic released by the school indicated that bags that are opaque, non-transparent, or printed without clear panels are not allowed on campus. It also recommended a size: the bags should be only 17 inches high and 12 inches wide.
Students, teachers, and personnel are allowed to bring only the following: books and notebooks, wallet or purse, pencil case, water bottle, snacks and lunch, and personal essentials.
Meanwhile, per the Philippine News Agency, over 1,600 students of San Jose National High School received transparent backpacks on Aug. 17, reportedly from local businessman and former city administrator Jimmy Yaokasin. His family also apparently donated a metal detector to the school in July.
The more stringent security measures come days after the Aug. 18 shooting incident in Ateneo de Zamboanga University, where two junior high school students died. On June 22, three students passed away while five other individuals were injured after two high school students went on a shooting rampage through San Jose National High School in Tacloban.
In both instances, the suspects, all considered CICLs, or children in conflict with the law, snuck guns into campus despite the presence of security personnel.
US schools' clear-backpack policy
Requiring students to use transparent bags in school has been the practice in some US schools since the 1990s, at least.
According to a report by The Washington Post, Heath High School in Kentucky initially banned backpacks after a student pulled out a pistol from his backpack and went on to fatally shoot three students and injure six others in December 1997. The school later allowed clear backpacks on campus.
Despite mixed feedback from parents, students, and officials regarding the transparent bags, at least 27 school districts had begun implementing the clear-backpack policy by August 2023, when the Post's report came out. At that point, per CNN, 42 school shootings had taken place since January 2023.
While some were pleased to see schools trying "something, anything" to keep campuses safe, others believed this policy was just a distraction from passing gun control measures. Parents critical of the policy also said clear backpacks were invasive, violated their children's privacy, and sent a message to students that schools didn't trust them not to carry out shootings themselves.
