The children who can't afford commercially manufactured toy guns make do with firecrackers, hand-made toy guns, blasting caps, pillboxes and grenades. Unicef laments the fact that it has helped in the immunization of thousands of children in this country only to see many of them lose life and limb due to firecrackers, he said. He added that the latest problems posed by firecrackers are poisoning and tetanus. Children are poisoned when they accidentally swallow small bits of firecrackers, and gunpowder falling on open wounds has caused cases of tetanus. The problem cannot be blamed only on the country's movie and television review board, which has allowed the proliferation of violence and gun-related movies and television programs.
Government policies are equally to blame.
For one, Republic Act 7183 allows the production, distribution and sale of firecrackers and other fireworks, a direct contradiction to the DOH's policy of campaigning against them. Local officials who allow the sale of firecrackers in their city because of Republic Act 7183 due to economic considerations, said DOH Director Eriberto Policar, fail to recognize the irreversible damage done to people, especially children. He cited the city of Baguio, the country's most popular holiday city, which was almost destroyed by fire when millions of firecrackers accidentally exploded near the heart of the city in 1998, causing irreparable injuries and damage to property. Many of the injuries caused by firecrackers are due to faulty manufacturing, according to Civil Relations Officer Major Arsenio Licad of the Philippine National Police. Firecracker making in the country has been legalized, he said, but manufacturers are not monitored and inspected effectively by government authorities.