BAGUIO CITY (PIA) — The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) continues to cater to victims and child perpetrators of Gender-based Violence-related cases in the region through its residential care facilities.
During the Regional Gender and Development Committee (RGADC) first quarter meeting recently, the DSWD-CAR reported that there are 16 residents who are still at the Regional Haven for Women and Girls (RHWG) in Baguio City. They are continuously being provided with interventions and activities for their healing and recovery.
The RHWG provides center-based services to vulnerable, disadvantaged, abused women and girls needing protective custody, temporary shelter, and psychosocial care.
Based on the DSWD’s data, most the clients of the RHWG are victims of sexual abuse which includes rape, incest rape, and acts of lasciviousness; strandee, neglected, and victims of trafficking.
“When we say strandee, ‘yan po ‘yung dinadala ng pulis sa amin. Dadalhin po siya ng Women and Children Protection Desk tapos ang social workers na po ang magproproseso kung bakit siya nandito sa Baguio kunyare e minor pa. Minsan po, ang nakikita naming case ay stow away ‘yung bata dahil po inaabuso rin sa kanyang sariling tahanan,” the DSWD-CAR reported.
Meanwhile, the Regional Rehabilitation Center for Youth (RRCY) in Sablan, Benguet continues to provide intensive treatment in a residential setting for the rehabilitation of Children in Conflict with the Law (CICL) whose sentences have been suspended.
In 2022, the center was able to rehabilitate 17 clients while 16 are still undergoing the process.
The center serves the need of these children through the provision of substitute parental care and protection. For 2022, the center was able to rehabilitate 86 out of 90 clients.
The DSWD-CAR shared the trends they have noted for the youth victims and perpetrators which include their exposure or access to pornography, some came from a broken family or they live with an extended family and they lack parental care.
They also noted that victims and perpetrators are getting younger, and the victims are related to their perpetrators and vice versa. (JDP/DEG-PIA CAR)
