Philippine News Digest 67
January 16 - 24, 2004
Contents:
American, German accused of abusing kids
Move to deport American charged of child abuse meets protest
2M Filipino women battered
American,
German accused of abusing kids
American Paul Jeffrey
Anderson, 55, and German Rainer Fahrenherst, 61, were accused of sexually
abusing 13 children in Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro and are temporarily
detained in the Puerto Galera police station for pedophilia. Two
girls, both 12 years old, assisted by their teacher, reported the case of
sexual molestation on January 14. Most of the children are migrants from
Mindanao and Romblon who thought they could make more money by selling
friendship bonds along the beaches of Puerto Galera. Aily Cobarrubias,
Municipal Social Welfare Office (MSWO) chief pleaded to the parents of the
possible victims of child abuse not to allow them to be deceived by
foreigners who, upon knowing of their poor condition, would offer to
improve their life or help the children. She said it is possible that
these children were taken nude pictures for posting in the internet.
Move
to deport American charged of child abuse meets protest
The move to deport
American Thomas Glenn Jarrel, 34, of Cincinnati, Ohio who was arrested
January 19 at a nightclub in San Fernando, Pampanga on a warrant issued by
the US Armed Forces, caused protest among civil society. Jarrel is facing
criminal charges of child prostitution in Angeles City for employing
minors under 15 years without permits and for engaging, promoting,
procuring and/or inducing child prostitution. In a letter to Commissioner
Alipio Fernandez Jr. of the Bureau of Immigration and Deportation, Fr.
Shay Cullen of PREDA Foundation said the summary deportation of suspects
on trial seems to be an escape route from accountability and justice. He
added that the demand by the US government to stop the legal proceedings
against Jarrel is totally unacceptable and a violation of the rights of
the children and the people of the Philippines to have justice done.
2M
Filipino women battered
About 2.16 million
Filipino women, or nine percent of women aged 18 and above, have
experienced physical abuse, with majority saying the harm was inflicted
by their partners including husbands, boyfriends and live-in partners,
according to a Social Weather Stations survey. An even larger percentage
of men- 12 percent or 2.8 million- admitted having physically harmed
someone, according to the study titled “Social Weather Report on
Domestic Violence Against Women.” Despite these findings, women's groups behind
the study stressed that awareness of women's rights is at 69 percent now,
higher that it was in 1995 when it was 53 percent. Source:
Ma. Ceres P. Doyo, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 24 January 2004.
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