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Tuesday, March 01, 2005
3 to 4 minors, women raped each month
By Edmund Sestoso
AN AVERAGE of three to four minors and adult women get raped or fall victim to other forms of sexual abuse in Dumaguete every month, said Vice Mayor William Ablong at the session of the City Council Thursday.
In the province, the average is eight per month since 2002, Ablong told the dumbstruck City Council in a speech to lobby support for his proposed ordinance that will create a city anti-decency board.
The vice mayor based his revelation from records of city and provincial offices of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the women's and children's desk of the Philippine National Police (PNP) command.
"This is only the tip of the iceberg," he said, adding the PNP desk believes other victims do not report their ordeal because of the accompanying stigma and family shame.
Ablong an official of the church-based organization Couples for Christ in the province warned that cases of sex-related crimes are rising.
He blamed what he called 'uncontrollable pornography' that, he said, affects body and mind, shapes attitude, and triggers deviant behavior harmful to the individual and the family.
The vice mayor said both children and adults are exposed to pornographic materials that include posters and magazines displayed in a number of sites in Dumaguete City.
Many posters, he said, display naked women, women with skimpy underwear, and suggestive sexual positions.
Ablong said pornography is a family issue because it destroys relationships and family values and a life issue because 'it takes away the dignity of human life, especially women and children'.
He said his measure aims to promote and protect the welfare of the family, women, and children, the dignity of women, and will help Dumaguete City sustain its image as an education center.
Sex scandal
The vice mayor filed his proposed ordinance in the wake of the city's defeat in the court battle over the controversial Dumaguete Sex Scandal.
Under the measure, the proposed anti-decency board will have the authority to regulate the filming, video taping, exhibition, printing, circulation or sale of obscene pictures, films, books or publications, stage shows, and skits in the city.
Ablong said his proposal is an to address the lapses resulted to the city's legal setback when it moved to have those allegedly linked to the infamous scandal prosecuted.
He lamented that the city's loss was also a loss on the side of the three women and their families in terms of their self worth and dignity.
(February 27, 2005 issue)
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