By Dominic dela Cruz
LAOAG CITY—The city government of Laoag, through the Office of the City Social Welfare and Development Officer (OCSWDO) intends to partner with Parola Santuwaryo where it will become the city’s referral facility for girls aged 8 to 18 years old, who are physically or mentally disabled and could not take care of themselves and are survivors of sexual abuse and exploitation and human trafficking in the province.
Laoag councilor Donald Nicolas said Parola Santuwaryo, Inc., has been providing temporary shelter for girls-survivors of child sexual abuse and exploitation and offers programs and services that ensure safety and basic needs, healing and empowering of each survivor.
Relative to this, Nicolas passed a resolution granting authority to Laoag Mayor James Bryan Q. Alcid to enter into a memorandum of agreement with the Parola Santuwaryo, Inc., represented by Mr. Richard Casibang Baquiran, for the referral, assistance, and implementation of temporary shelter for girl-survivors of child sexual abuse and exploitation.
Nicolas said that Section 3 (2), Article XV, of the 1987 Constitution, declares that: “The State shall defend the right of children to assistance, including proper care and nutrition, and special protection from all forms of neglect, abuse, cruelty, exploitation and other conditions prejudicial to their development”.
Section 17 (b) (2) (iv) of Republic Act No. 7160, also known as the, “Local Government Code of 1991”, also provides that, “Such basic services and facilities include, but are not limited to social welfare services which include programs and projects on child and youth welfare, family and community welfare, women’s welfare, welfare of the elderly and disabled persons; community-based rehabilitation programs for vagrants, beggars, street children, scavengers, juvenile delinquents, and victims of drug abuse; livelihood and other pro-poor projects; nutrition services; and family planning services”.
In addition, Nicolas said that second paragraph, Section 2, Article I, of Republic Act No. 7610, also known as the, “Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act”, also provides that “It shall be the policy of the State to protect and rehabilitate children gravely threatened or endangered by circumstances which affect or will affect their survival and normal development and over which they have no control”.
The Parola Santuwaryo Inc. is a non-profit, non-religious, and non-political organization that provides programs and services of refuge, rehabilitation and reintegration to children and women rescued from sexual and trafficking.
