Cherie Sagum, 45, has been single-handedly raising her two sons since 2013, the same year when she decided to free herself and her children from her abusive partner. Earning P350 a day from dishwashing, Sagum stretches this meager income to provide the basic needs of her third and 10th-grader sons. 

Sagum recalled the night her drunk husband beat her and then struck her with a broken umbrella.

“Hindi na nakilala nila ate yung mukha ko nung sinundo ako sa bahay …. Halos maputol-putol yung mga daliri ko dahil [sinasalag] ko yung dalawang anak ko na nakaharang sa tatay nila,” Sagum told the Collegian in an interview. 

Sagum is just one of the thousands of women who continue to experience violence despite the existence of Republic Act 9262 or the Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children Act of 2004. The law defines violence against women and their children (VAWC) as any action against them that causes physical, sexual, psychological, or economic abuse. 

Perpetrators cannot reason that they were under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs to dodge the law, and they can be imprisoned for at most 20 years and fined at most P300,000.

Underreported Cases

Despite the existing law, VAWC incidents continue to persist, with the nongovernmental organization Child Protection Network (CPN) documenting 3,382 cases of violence against women and 7,778 cases of violence against children since the start of this year alone.

Numbers by the network only record cases that led to hospitalization. The general number is thrice as high at 22,421, according to the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG).

But those figures could be even higher, as cultural issues such as victim-blaming and stigma discourage victims from reporting cases of VAWC, gender specialist Michael Pastor said.

“When people shift to victim-blaming, they are actually absolving themselves of accountability,” he added.

The undercount only worsened with the pandemic. With women stuck in their homes with abusive husbands, police could not record VAWC incidents due to lockdowns and travel restrictions. 

CPN’s annual conference Ako Para sa Bata Chairperson Dr. Namnama De Dios also recognized underreporting as a problem in responding to children who are victims of violence. 

“Kaya ang attitude palagi is pag nariyan na [ang mga batang biktima], huwag [silang] itataboy. Kung ano’ng meron na facility [at equipment] kahit na hindi ka-level ng mga malalaking hospital [ay] gawin mo sa pasyente tapos i-refer kung kinakailangan,” De Dios said.

Child Trafficking and Gender-based Violence

The Department of Justice last August also raised the alarm on more than 500,000 cases of online sexual abuse or exploitation of children and incest rape reported within the country.

Republic Act 7610 provides stronger protection to children from any forms of violence, and Republic Act 11648 criminalizes sexual intercourse with a minor under 16 years old. But children as young as 13 in urban poor communities, particularly in Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas, and Valenzuela, are still being trafficked in exchange for P5,000 if they have not yet had sexual intercourse prior, said Pastor. 

Child trafficking also exposes children to sexually transmitted diseases, with children as young as 10 years old contracting HIV, he added.

Targeted violence also affects members of the LGBTQIA+ community. Though current laws should prevent this kind of gender-based violence, Pastor said that the country always falls behind when it comes to actual implementation because of cultural and societal norms.

To this end, the gender specialist suggested involving men in the process to improve interventions for gender-based violence. 

“Kung gusto mong kausapin ang lalaki on how to change and shift their attitudes, kailangang lalaki yung kumausap sa [kapwa] lalaki. But you also have to make sure that those men are also gender advocates na mayroong tamang gender sensitivity training,” Pastor said.

What the Anti-VAWC Law Lacks

Current laws might also quickly become outdated as new forms of technology-facilitated gender-based violence emerge, such as deepfake pornography.

Party-list group Gabriela said that the SIM registration law, for example, has failed in its purpose of combating cybercrimes, as nearly 500,000 cases of online abuse of children were still recorded in 2022 despite legislation of the measure in October of the same year. 

The party-list has instead called for the passage of the Expanded Anti-VAWC bill which would amend the current anti-VAWC law and penalize perpetrators of digital violence, as well.

Gabriela also urged the government to increase funding for programs and social services that protect women and children from violence, starting with the establishment of a national fund for the support of victims and survivors of VAWC.

For now, Sagum hopes for a better future for herself and her children. She echoed the calls of advocates that the government must strengthen hospital service response to VAWC victims and survivors and establish women and children protection units in every local government unit. 

“Sa mga kapwa ko babae, kahit iniisip ninyo ang mga anak ninyo, isipin pa rin ninyo ang sarili ninyong kapakanan. Sa gobyerno [naman], ipakita [ninyo] na ginagawa at sinasabuhay [ninyo] ang batas,” Sagum said. ●