Photo courtesy of PIA CO
QUEZON CITY, (PIA) — The first female Director General of the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) and Chairperson of PIA’s Gender and Development (GAD), Director-General Katherine Chloe S. De Castro expressed full support to safe spaces in the agency.
During the launch of the 18-Day Campaign to End Violence Against Women (VAW) held at the PIA Auditorium, Quezon City on Monday morning, DG Kat De Castro rallied the support of all employees to continue to support and implement safe spaces in the work place.
“Sa PIA patuloy nating bigyang halaga ang pagpapatupad ng safe spaces na kung saan ang mga kababaihan ay nakararamdam ng kaligtasan, suporta, at respeto. Malayo sa pang-aabuso, diskriminasyon, at karahasan, at mayroong access sa mga pagkukunan ng tulong.”
De Castro emphasized the need to prevent and respond to any form violence against women or any gender.
“As the PIA’s first female Director General and GAD Chairperson, bilang kapwa babae at isang ina, I encourage everyone, mapa babae o lalaki, pati ang mga miyembro ng ating LGBTQIA+ community to come together during this campaign and recognize that PIA supports not only by preventing discrimination at our work place but also in responding to end violence against women.”
She also noted the important role of the PIA as part of the communications arm of the government in raising awareness on the forms of violence women face and actively challenge attitudes that perpetuate these injustices.
The Director General likewise expressed her support in the agency’s implementation of policies that protect employees from any form of violence and provide clear avenues for reporting and addressing such violations.
Violence remains one of the problems that women and girls face not only in the Philippines but in all corners of the world.
The 2022 National Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reveals that nearly 1 out of 5 women have experienced emotional, physical, or sexual violence by their current or most recent husband or intimate partner.
In 2023 alone, 8,055 cases classified under the Republic Act No. 9262 (Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Act of 2004) were reported to the Philippine National Police (PNP).
VAW appears as one of the country’s pervasive social problems, various measures and mechanisms have been employed and implemented to address it. One of which is the 18-Day Campaign to End VAW, an advocacy campaign that is observed annually from November 25 to December 12 as mandated by Proclamation 1172 s. 2006. (JEG/PIA-NCR)
