SAN FERNANDO CITY (PIA) -- The Women and Children Protection Desk (WCPD) of the Police Regional Office 1 (PRO-1) intensifies its drive to address the prevalence of rape incidence in the Ilocos Region.
According to PMAJ Monette Balderas, chief of the PRO-1’s WCPD, the team remains steadfast on exhausting all means to counter the occurrence of gender-based violence (GBV) in the region, especially rape, as crime statistics shows that it is the most prevalent GBV since 2020 up to present in Region 1.
In 2020, some 542 rape cases were reported in the region; 482 cases in 2021; while as of August 2022, there were already 267 cases recorded.
Balderas said that based on their assessment, female children aged 13 to 17 years old belonging to the lower socio-economic class are the most common victims of rape.
“Data shows that they are usually the victims of rape by offenders belonging to the 18 to 25 years old age group who are found to be jobless, and unfortunately, the perpetrators are mostly known to the victims,” she said.
Said crimes are committed frequently during Saturdays to Mondays between 8:00pm to 12:00mn.
With the said assessment, the PRO-1’s WCPD eyes to conduct dialogues, lectures, and seminars wherein target participants are unemployed males.
Also, the team aims to establish more enhanced linkages and collaboration with local government units to empower women and children through staging training on basic self-defense, as well as learning sessions on responsible parenthood.
In general, PRO-1’s WCPD continuously maximizes all its units for wider information dissemination through its personnel in police stations distributing flyers in jeepneys’ or tricycles’ terminals, or through house-to-house visitations to help in the prevention of GBV.
Meanwhile, the Regional Inter-Agency Committee Against Trafficking – Child Pornography (CP) – and Violence Against Women and Children (VAWC) Ilocos had recently approved its Strategic Plan for the next two years anchored on raising awareness about laws which protect vulnerable sectors from trafficking, CP, and VAWC, as well as to inform the citizenry about the programs and services that victim-survivors may avail of. (JCR/AMB/CGRC, PIA Region 1)
