How the women’s desk came to be

By now, you are now familiar with the infomercial that features Secretary Ronnie Puno of Department of Interior and Local Government and the major program of the department for women and children- the Women and Children Protection Desk. This is one of the major actions taken by the department in ensuring that the women and the children considered as part of the marginalized sector will be considered. But how does this program came to be, and what pushed the department to design this kind of program?

You need to remember that addressing the concerns of the women and the children is one of the biggest objectives of the office since the National Police Commission has issued that Memorandum Circular Number 92-010. This memorandum called for the establishment of the Child and Youth Relations Section in many cities and also the establishment of the Child and Youth Relations Officer in police stations nationwide. This kind of memorandum was issued as a response to the growing threats to women and children. And afterwards, the RA 7610 was enacted as well and this was the Special Protection of Children against Child Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination and this was passed and approved June of 1992. And with the passing of this law, the Philippine National Police has worked with other concerned government agencies like the Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Department of Justice. The PNP has also created linkage with other concerned non-government agencies. All these moves by the PNP and the DILG is their way to ensure that there will be better awareness for people and the police force when it comes to the rights of women and children. And ultimately, the linkage that was created was to ensure that rights can be protected and women and children can be taken far from exploitation and danger.

And all these moves by the department and the police force led to the establishment of the first Women’s Desk and this was established in Quezon City. This was established in 1993 and this was part of the project of the Directorate for Police Community Relations and the National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women and this project was also made possible with the participation of non-government organizations. And from there, the project has grown in size and scope.