Philippine News Digest 61
August 29, 2003 ·
Contents:
- More than half of juvenile deliquents suffer abuse under government custody
- Preda opens new home for children in conflict with the law
- Rape statistics rose by 16 percent
More than half of juvenile delinquents suffer abuse under government custody
A study conducted by Save the Children Foundation revealed that more than half of every 10 juvenile delinquents in Southern Mindanao suffer from sexual advances and psychological harm while in the custody of government authorities. Most of those abused were females and offenders include barangay (village) and police authorities. The study also pointed that the process which children go through under the prevailing justice system is punitive an stressed the need for a separate justice system for juvenile delinquents. Several civic organizations including Save the Children and PREDA Foundation have been lobbying in the congress for the enactment of the juvenile justice bill. Source: PDI Mindanao Bureau, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 29 August 2003.
PREDA opens new home for children in conflict with the law
The PREDA Foundation opened on September 17 a new home for children in conflict with the law that aims to provide them with an environment conducive to their recovery and development to productive members of society. The new home was conceptualized after PREDA discovered that even rehabilitation centers run by the government are overcrowded to the the detriment of the development of the children. It is hoped that this initiative would decongest these rehabilitation centers.
Rape statistics rose by 16 percent
A total of 1,599 rape cases nationwide for the first six months of the year was reported to the Philippine National Police, an increase of 16 percent from last year’s 1,375 cases documented over the same period. This translates to one rape incident every two and a half hours. The Southern Tagalog region had the highest number of rape cases reported in the country with 220. Metro Manila came in second while the Bicol region came in a distant third with 148 cases. Source: Alcuin Papa, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 29 August 2003.
