• CHERYL G. CRUZ
A help desk was launched at SM City Bacolod Dec. 1 in line with the 18-day campaign to end violence against women (VAW).
The launching of the Orange Help Desk, which aims to provide accessible support to individuals experiencing violence by integrating the process of seeking assistance, was led by councilors Celia Flor, Em Ang, and Simplicia Distrito, and SM Bacolod assistant manager Lorenzo Benedicto, the city said.
Other city and mall employees, as well as personnel from the Bacolod City Police Office, Philippine Coast Guard, and Public Attorney’s Office, among others, also attended the launching and signed in a commitment wall.
Benedicto emphasized the importance of a collective effort in creating a safer environment for everyone, while the councilors underscored the urgent need to address VAW, the city said in a press release.
Flor also authored a resolution urging the city to participate and support the activities in observance of the 18-day campaign to end VAW that started Nov. 25.
Her resolution was approved during the Nov. 29 session of the Sangguniang Panlungsod.
This advocacy campaign is observed annually until Dec. 12, as mandated by Proclamation 1172 in 2006, the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) said.
“Violence against women (VAW) and girls is not just a major public health problem but also a grave violation of human rights. It manifests gender inequity, targeting women and girls because of their subordinate status in society,” the PCW stressed.
The United Nations defines VAW as any act of gender-based violence that results in, or likely to result in, physical, sexual, or mental harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life”, it added.
The World Health Organization said about one in three women, or 35 percent worldwide, experienced either physical and/or sexual violence from an intimate partner or non-partner in a lifetime.
The National Demographic Health Survey 2017, released by the Philippine Statistics Authority, also revealed that one in four Filipino women, aged 15-49, has experienced physical, emotional, or sexual violence from a husband or partner, the PCW said. | CGC
