BAGUIO CITY – The Police Regional Office-Cordillera Administrative Region (PRO-CAR) is carrying out massive information drive at the grassroots to address rising rape cases.
“Given the number of rape cases, we have implemented various interventions to counter this trend,” Police Col. Byron Tegui-in, chief of the Regional Community Affairs and Development Unit (RCADU) of the PRO-CAR said in an interview Friday.
PRO-CAR record shows that from July 2022 to June 2024, a total of 118 rape cases and 60 acts of lasciviousness cases were committed against women.
These are on top of the 334 rape cases and 92 cases of acts of lasciviousness committed against children or those below 18 years old during the same period.
Tegui-in said gender-based violence is high, especially during the pandemic when most of the people were locked in their homes.
To address the cases, police units were instructed to intensify the information and education campaign such as the “Enhanced Pani-o”, a pro-active house-to-house crime prevention measure that eliminates not only rape but also other gender-based violence.
He said Enhanced Pani-o adopts all the best practices and information and education drives of provincial police offices (PPOs) like Abra’s “Implan Lawa”, Benguet’s “Implan Dikig”, Kalinga’s “Implan Paniyaw”, and Mountain Province’s “Project Safe Juan, as well as Baguio City Police Office’s “Oplan Rizal”.
“We cannot be on the side of every person all the time to protect them from possible perpetrators but giving them proper information about signs to look for before possibly becoming a victim, what to do as a victim, and where to seek help are provided through information education materials and dialogues and lectures,” he said.
Aside from the house-to-house information and education campaign, Tegui-in said they also have the “Binnadang” (helping hand) program where personnel contribute funds for the repair or construction of homes of selected beneficiaries, incorporating in the design having more than one room – for parents, for male and female children.
“This was incorporated with the thought that most rape cases are incest rape and committed in the home, non-exposure is another preventive measure,” he said. **Liza Agoot
