A LEGAL TREATISE ON R.A.

9262

Legal Writing SAN BEDA COLLEGE OF LAW 1-R Dean Ulpiano Sarmiento III

Submitted by: Keith Hernandez Cipriano Marni Ortega Anna Leah Pallon
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
1

When the House is no Longer a Home The Importance of R.A. 9262 and other Laws Addressing Women and Childrens Problems
20 Years of Struggle A Brief Legislative History of R.A. 9262 The Law, herself Punishable Acts under R.A. 9262 Battered Wife Syndrome as a Defense The Barangay Protection Orders The Impact of R.A. 9262 Challenges to Policy Implementation Bibliography

pg. 3

pg. 7

pg. 9 pg. 15 pg. 16

pg. 18 pg. 21

WHEN THE HOUSE IS NO LONGER A HOME:

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The Importance of R.A. 9262 and other Laws Addressing Women and Childrens Problems The evening of 15 November, 1995, Ben Genosa came home from a cock fight. He was very much displeased with his wife, Marivic, for looking for him all over the town plaza earlier that day. He beat her up and threatened to kill her with a knife. Marivic was a victim of domestic violence and that night of brutality at the hands of Ben was no uncommon occurrence in their life as a married couple. It would however be the last, because that faithful November 15, Marivic Genosa bludgeoned Ben to death with a steel pipe as he lay asleep in his bed.

Marivic Genosa became the first death convict to be spared by the Supreme Court on the grounds that she was suffering from the Battered Wife Syndrome.1 She was convicted of parricide; a capital offense. But due to the presence of two mitigating circumstances and the lack of an aggravating circumstance, the court reduced the sentence of Genosa to prison mayor. A novel theory, the court required that the all three stages of the Battered Wife Syndrome (BWS) be proven by Marivics defense, as it was understood to be a scientifically defined pattern of psychological and behavioral symptoms found in women living in battering relationships as a result of cumulative abuse.2

However, in the eyes of the court, the defense failed to prove that Marivic underwent all the three phases of the BWS and thus opted to treat the syndrome as a mitigating circumstance akin to such illness of the offender as would diminish the exercise of the will power of the offender without however depriving him of the consciousness of his acts.3 Marivics case echoes the experiences of many Filipino women in the hands of abusive men. Violence against women is a form of gender-based violence targeted against women on the basis of their sex or which affects women.4 Among the other forms of gender-based violence, VAW is prevalent in patriarchal Philippine society with domestic
1 2

Labro, Vicente. "Blessings After the Bruises." Sunday Inquirer Magazine 22 Feb. 2004: 6. Print. Sec. 3, R.A. 9262 3 Art. 13, Par. 9, Revised Penal Code 4 Women Working Together to Stop Violence against Women. "Breaking the Silence." Breaking the Silence: Seeking Justice in Intimate Partner Violence in the Philippines. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2013. <www.amnesty.org.ph/publications/pdfs/Phils_WOOC_VAW_report_final.pdf>.

abuse being the most reported and prevalent among all forms of violence. According to
Gabriela Womens Party, approximately one woman is beaten by her partner or husband every forty-three minutes, and one child is battered every hour and twenty minutes. Their research added that a woman or child is harassed every four hours, that there are five hundred thousand victims of prostitution wherein one hundred thousand of them are children, and that eleven women die every day due to complications in childbirth.5 A study conducted by the National

Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) revealed that one in five women aged 15-49 has experienced physical violence since age 15. In 2002, two years prior to the enactment of R.A. 9262, 5,058 cases of domestic abuse were reported to the police; comprising nearly 30% of the total number of VAW cases reported.
Table no.1: Violence Against Women as of December 2002
Inc./Dec. (%)

Indicator

2002 Figures

2001 Figures

Cases Reported to the Police* Total Physical Injuries/Wife Battering Rape Acts of Lasciviousness Maltreatment Threats Attempted Rape Incestuous Rape Others 561 316 91 1816 9,547 5,058 972 733 10,345 5,668 1,026 725 588 334 188 1,816 -4.59 -5.39 -51.60 0 -7.71 -10.76 -5.26 1.10

NSCB statistics also show that the highest incidence of physical and sexual violence occurs among those who are divorced/separated/widowed, followed by those who are married or living together (9.6%), and the highest (19.7%), and the lowest incidence among those who never married (4.3%). Moreover, for the married/divorced/widowed victim survivors previously referred to, the perpetrator of physical violence is their husband more than half of the times (54.7%) as shown in the table below. Likewise, for sexual violence, the current husband/partner is the main perpetrator, accounting for 60.5% of the cases.
5

Lets Dance the One Billion Rising. From: Gabrielawomensparty.net

Table no. 2: Persons committing domestic abuse against women and children
as of December 2002
Marital Status Ever married 54.7 12.1 0.3 0.6 16.6 18.5 9.3 0.9 11.6 0.2 0.1 1.2 0.0 0.8 1.1 1,601 Never married na na 19.8 0.6 25.9 34.5 21.0 0 9.6 na na na 0.3 0.8 0.4 269

Persons committing violence Current husband Former husband Current boyfriend Former boyfriend Father/step-father Mother/step-mother Sister/Brother Daughter/son Other relative Mother-in-law Father-in-law Other in-law Teacher Employer/someone at work Other Number of women

Total 46.8 10.3 3.1 0.6 17.9 20.8 11.0 0.8 11.3 0.2 0.1 1.0 0.0 0.8 1.0 1,870

Children, innocent as they are, have not been spared from the inhumanity of domestic abuse. Statistics gathered by the National Statistical Bureau from 2001 to 2002 show that children are also frequent victims of abuse in their homes. The darker side of statistics on VAWC is that most incidents of domestic abuse go unreported; for fear that the offender might retaliate and kill the victim-survivors, or because the victim-survivors themselves have developed a dependency on the abuser and would rather stay in the relationship than seek help from proper government authorities.6

Table no.3: Violence Against Children

as of December 2002
2002 Figures 2001 Figures Inc./Dec. (%)

Indicator

Id.

Cases Reported to the Police* Total Rape Physical Injuries Act of Lasciviousness Child Abuse Others 8,222 2,732 2,155 1,241 829 1,265 8,639 2,275 2,274 1,312 939 1,839 -4.83 20.09 -5.23 -5.41 -11.71 -31.21

Table no.4: Cases of Violence against Children Served by the DSWD as of December 2002
2002 Figures 2001 Figures Inc./Dec. (%)

Indicator

Cases Served by the Department of Social Welfare and Development** Total Sexually Abused Neglected PhysicallyAbused / Maltreated Abandoned Victims of Child Labor SexuallyExploited Others 10,045 4,129 2,549 1,440 1,079 358 284 206 9,448 3,980 2,285 1,445 985 412 249 92 5.99 3.74 11.55 -.35 9.54 -13.11 14.06 123.91

Intimate violence leaves long lasting negative effects of on the physical and psychological health of the victim survivor.7 Victims of domestic violence had a significantly higher rate of general neuroticism, depression, oversensitivity, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, anxiety, and paranoid tendency, and from post traumatic stress disorders8. The intensity of the abuse also worsens the longer the woman stays in her abusive relationship. The battered woman puts herself and her child in grave danger by staying with the abuser. Likewise, children may suffer from the aforementioned mental disorders and crises, and at the same

7 8

Swanson, R.W.. "Battered Wife Syndrome." Canadian Medical Association Journal 130.6 (1984): 709 - 712. Print. Post traumatic stress disorder pertains to a severe anxiety disorder that can develop after exposure to any event that results in psychological trauma. This event may involve the threat of death to oneself or to someone else, or to one's own or someone else's physical, sexual, or psychological integrity, overwhelming the individual's ability to cope. (APA, 1994)

time develop a twisted sense of authority; with them seeing the abusive spouse as the true parent and violence as the only means of getting what one wants.9

With the disturbingly large numbers of violence against women and their children occurring in the Philippines, the Legislature enacted several laws that specifically remedies the issue of gender-based violence against women and children. Among such laws is Republic Act no. 9262 or the Anti Violence against Women and Children Act of 2004 (Anti VAWC). This law seeks to address the instances and prevalence of violence against women and children, abuses on women and their children by partners such as husband or ex-husband, live-in partner or ex-live in partner, boyfriend/girlfriend or ex-boyfriend/exgirlfriend, and dating partner or ex-dating partner among others (EU-WFS, 2011)

A BRIEF LEGISLATIVE HISTORY OF R.A. 9262

Republic Act 9262 or the Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children Act of 2004 is our countrys landmark law on domestic violence. Womens groups, led by the National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women (NCRFW), fought for RA

9262 patiently for ten long years before it became a law in March 2004.

In the Philippines, RA 9262 is among the multitude of laws that seeks to protect womens [and childrens rights] against any form of violence and abuse. Some of them include Anti-Sexual Harassment Act of 1995, the Anti-Rape Act of 1997, the Rape Victims Assistance Act, An Act Declaring Unlawful the Matching of Filipino Male Order Brides to Foreigners, Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003, the Special Protection on Children Against Abuse, Exploitation, and Discrimination Act among others. . In the Philippines, RA 9262 is among the multitude of laws that seeks to prot ect womens [and childrens rights] against any form of violence and abuse. Some of them include Anti-Sexual Harassment Act of 1995, the Anti-Rape Act of 1997, the Rape Victims Assistance Act, An Act Declaring Unlawful the Matching of Filipino Male Order Brides to Foreigners, Anti-Trafficking in

Supra.

Persons Act of 2003, the Special Protection on Children Against Abuse, Exploitation, and Discrimination Act among others. According to Sec. 14, Art. II of the Constitution, the State recognizes the role of women in nation-building, and shall ensure the fundamental equality before the law of women and men. Given the prevalence of gender-based violence targeted against women, it is only proper that Congress address the issue of female disempowerment in Philippine society. Though not a self executory provision, the said section lays down the policy by which laws promoting the rights of women are to be made.

Furthermore, the Philippines ratified the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in 1981 and by virtue of the incorporation clause enshrined in Sec. 2, Art. II of the Constitution, it adapts the provisions of CEDAW as part of the law of the land and agree[s] to pursue by all appropriate means and without delay a policy of eliminating discrimination against women. 10 It is a wonder that it took over twenty decades for Congress to enact a bill that breathes life into the provisions of the Constitution and CEDAW.

Several versions of the said law were also made; another contributing factor on why it took so long to legislate. Some critics opined that the legislators at that time lacked the necessary political will to expedite the legislative process. But in the Senate, what expedited the legislative process was the commitment of Senate President Franklin M. Drilon that it would be passed in the 12th Congress during that time.

One of the most notable provisions of said law is the inclusion of the BWS or battered woman syndrome as a justifying circumstance under RA 9262. This part of the law took an especially long time to be discussed since there were a lot of contentions regarding its definitions and also owing to the fact that BWS is a relatively new concept. BWS was included in RA 9262 upon the direction of Senator Luisa Estrada, who is a psychiatrist.

10

Article 2, CEDAW.

THE LAW, HERSELF PUNISHABLE ACTS UNDER R.A. 9262

The relationship of the victim-survivor and the abuser are controlling elements of offenses punishable under R.A. 9262. Section 3 defines Violence against women and their children as: Any act or a series of acts committed by any person against a woman who is his wife, former wife, or against a woman with whom the person has or had a sexual or dating relationship, or with whom he has a common child, or against her child whether legitimate or illegitimate, within or without the family abode, which result in or is likely to result in physical, sexual, psychological harm or suffering, or economic abuse including threats of such acts, battery, assault, coercion, harassment or arbitrary deprivation of liberty.

Thus for a woman to be considered a victim-survivor under R.A. 9262, she must have or had a sexual or dating relationship, or a common child with the abuser. Even a single sexual act suffices to link the victim-survivor with the abuser under the law.11 The victimsurvivor may refer to the abusers wife, former wife, or a woman who has or had a causal dating relationship with him. Likewise, the child must be one who is below eighteen (18) years of age or older but incapable of taking care of themselves as defined under R.A. no. 7610. It refers to the biological child of the victim-survivor, whether legitimate or illegitimate, and other children under her care.

Under Section 3 of R.A. 9262, acts of violence against women and their children have four ugly faces: physical violence, sexual violence, psychological violence, and economic abuse. We shall now proceed by discussing each of the forms of VAWC abuses separately.

11

Sec. 3, R.A. 9262

Physical Violence Physical violence refers to acts that include bodily physical harm.12 The different acts of physical violence are punishable under Section 5 of the said act. Supplementary to the said section of the special law are Articles 263, 265, and 266 of the Revised Penal Code.

If the physical harm inflicted upon the victim-survivor and her child is constitutive of attempted, frustrated, or consummated parricide or murder, or homicide, or infanticide, or resulted in mutilation, the offender shall be punished under the Revised Penal Code, as provided in Sec. 6 of R.A. 9262. If the offender inflicted physical and psychological harm on the womans child, he may be held liable under either Section 5 of R.A. 9262 or under Section 10 of R.A. 7610.

Section 5 also punishes threats under Articles 282 and 285 of the Revised Penal Code if committed by the offender against a woman he has had a dating or sexual relation with. In Rustan Ang y Pascua v. Court of Appeals 13, Pascua, former boyfriend of victim-survivor, Irish, sent to the girl the picture of a naked woman, not her, but with her face on it when she wanted to break up with him for his infidelity. He then told her that he would spread the said picture across chatrooms and social networking sites. Pascua plead that the one act of sending an offensive picture should not be considered a form of harassment. The Court however, held that:

Section 3(a) of R.A. 9262 punishes "any act or series of acts" that constitutes violence against women. This means that a single act of harassment, which translates into violence, would be enough. The object of the law is to protect women and children. Punishing only violence that is repeatedly committed would license isolated ones. Pascua also argued that he and Irish were an on and off couple thus not covered by the provisions of R.A. 9262. Pascua claims that, being "romantically
12 13

Id. RUSTAN ANG y PASCUA, vs. THE HONORABLE COURT OF APPEALS, G.R. No. 182835, April 20, 2010.

10

involved," implies that the offender and the offended woman have or had sexual relations. According to him, "romance" implies a sexual act. otherwise, ruling: But it seems clear that the law did not use in its provisions the colloquial verb "romance" that implies a sexual act. It did not say that the offender must have "romanced" the offended woman. Rather, it used the noun "romance" to describe a couples relationship, i.e., "a love affair." The Court held

Sexual Violence

Under Section 3 of R.A. 9262, "Sexual violence" refers to an act which is sexual in nature, committed against a woman or her child. It includes, but is not limited to:

a) rape, sexual harassment, acts of lasciviousness, treating a woman or her child as a sex object, making demeaning and sexually suggestive remarks, physically attacking the sexual parts of the victim's body, forcing her/him to watch obscene publications and indecent shows or forcing the woman or her child to do indecent acts and/or make films thereof, forcing the wife and mistress/lover to live in the conjugal home or sleep together in the same room with the abuser;

b) acts causing or attempting to cause the victim to engage in any sexual activity by force, threat of force, physical or other harm or threat of physical or other harm or coercion;

c) Prostituting the woman or child.

Sexual violence has three elements: (1) The offender causes of attempts to cause the woman or her child to engage in any sexual activity; including masturbation, having lascivious conducts with the offender or other persons, or lewd
11

exhibition of genitals, (2) The act of the offender does not constitute rape, for otherwise he shall be prosecuted under the Revised Penal Code or the Anti-Rape Law, and (3) the offender uses force or threat of force, physical harm, or through intimidation directed against the woman or her child or her/his immediate family. Additionally, the offender may be held liable for violating R.A. 7610 with regards to sexual violence committed against the child.

Psychological Violence

Section 3 of R.A. 9262 defines psychological violence as acts or omissions causing or likely to cause mental or emotional suffering of the victim such as but not limited to intimidation, harassment, stalking, damage to property, public ridicule or humiliation, repeated verbal abuse and mental infidelity. It includes causing or allowing the victim to witness the physical, sexual or psychological abuse of a member of the family to which the victim belongs, or to witness pornography in any form or to witness abusive injury to pets or to unlawful or unwanted deprivation of the right to custody and/or visitation of common children.

It is submitted that Section 5(h) can be committed through recklessness, if said recklessness caused substantial emotional and psychological distress to the victim-survivor.14 For instance, A consented that B film their sexual intercourse. However, B bragged about this to his frat-mates and sent them the pictures through email. The frat-mates then uploaded the video to websites online. B can be held liable for violation of Section 5 of R.A. 9262 along with his frat-mates, notwithstanding the fact that none of the frat-mates have or had any sexual or dating relations with A because of the suppletory application of the Revised Penal Code to R.A. 9262.15 In Go-Tan v Tan16, the court held that:

14 15

Campanilla, Marlo. Special Penal Laws. Volume I. Sec. 47, R.A. 9262 16 Go-Tan v. Tan, G.R. No, 168852, September 30, 2008.

12

With more reason, therefore, the principle of conspiracy under Article 8 of the RPC may be applied suppletorily to R.A. No. 9262 because of the express provision of Section 47 that the RPC shall be supplementary to said law. Thus, general provisions of the RPC, which by their nature, are

necessarily applicable, may be applied suppletorily.

Thus, the principle of conspiracy may be applied to R.A. No. 9262. For once conspiracy or action in concert to achieve a criminal design is shown, the act of one is the act of all the conspirators, and the precise extent or modality of participation of each of them becomes secondary, since all the conspirators are principals.

Economic Abuse

"Economic abuse" refers to acts that make or attempt to make a woman financially dependent which includes, but is not limited to the following: 17

1. withdrawal of financial support or preventing the victim from engaging in any legitimate profession, occupation, business or activity, except in cases wherein the other spouse/partner objects on valid, serious and moral grounds as defined in Article 73 of the Family Code;

2. deprivation or threat of deprivation of financial resources and the right to the use and enjoyment of the conjugal, community or property owned in common;

3. destroying household property;

4. controlling the victims' own money or properties or solely controlling the conjugal money or properties.

17

Supra.

13

Economic abuse has Two elements. The first is that the offender compels or attempts to compel the woman or her child to engage in conduct, which she/he has the right to desist from; or to desist from conduct which she/he has the right to engage in; or restricts or attempts to restrict the freedom of movement or conduct of the victim. Thus the offender cannot be held liable for compelling his child to do his homework or go to school, nor can he be held liable if he compels his spouse to desist from prostituting herself.

The second element is that the offender uses force or threat or force, physical or other harm, or threat of physical or other harm, or intimidation directed against the victim.

It is also important to note that deprivation or denial of financial support is not per se punishable. Said deprivation is punishable only if it is committed for the purpose of with the effect of controlling or restricting the womans or her childs movement or conduct; thereby rendering the offense under Section 5(e) or R.A. 9262 a form of coercion. Hence, a man who truly has no means to support his wife and her child cannot be held liable for a violation of R.A. 9262 because he could not give them any financial support.

Battered Woman Syndrome as a Justifying Circumstance Section 3 of RA 9262 defines Battered Woman Syndrome as a scientifically defined pattern of psychological and behavioral symptoms found in women living in battering relationships as a result of cumulative abuse. It covers all forms of abuse (physical, emotional, psychological, verbal) for as long as these result to a pattern of psychological and behavioural symptoms. In People v. Genosa, the court held that in order to be classified as a battered woman, the couple must go through the battering cycle at least twice. Any woman may find herself in an abusive relationship with a man once. If it occurs a second time, and she remains in the situation, she is defined as a battered woman.

14

As provided by Section 26 of the law, to invoke BWS as a defense sans any of the elements for justifying circumstance of self defense, the following requisites must concur: 1. The battered woman and the batterer must have a marital, sexual, or dating relationship as defined in section 3 of the said act. 2. The battered woman must be suffering from physical and psychological or emotional distress 3. The physical and psychological or emotional distress resulted from cumulative abuse by the batterer; and finally 4. The battered woman must have actually feared imminent harm from her batterer and honestly believed in the need to kill him in order to save her life.

The determination of whether or not a woman is suffering from the battered woman syndrome has been mired with criticisms. Insensitive judges and litigators, alien to the experiences of victims of domestic abuse, have led them to rely heavily on expert opinions by psychologists and psychiatrists; treating the BWS as an insanity plea.18 In Genosa, the court required that every stage of the scientifically defined BWS be clearly proven, and this was the very downfall of the Genosa case. Guanzon remarks: The so called pattern of psychological and behavioural symptoms, leaves out a wide range of psychological state of women who suffer abuse that may not be classified as BWS. The word "scientific" can result to a restrictive definition of the BWS19

The Barangay Protection Order

Section 8 outlines the procedure of the issuance of a Barangay Protection Order (BPO). A BPO is therein defined as an order issued under this act for the
18 19

Supra. Guanzon , Maria Rowena. "Legal and Conceptual Framework of Battered Women Syndrome as a Defense." Philippine Law Journal 86 (2012): 124 - 145. Print.

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purpose of preventing further acts of violence against a woman or her child specified in Section 5 of this Act and granting other necessary relief. The relief granted under a protection order serve the purpose of safeguarding the victim from further harm, minimizing any disruption in the victim's daily life, and facilitating the opportunity and ability of the victim to independently regain control over her life. The provisions of the protection order shall be enforced by law enforcement agencies. There are three kinds of BPOs under R.A. 9262, namely:

1. The barangay protection order (BPO), which is the protection order issued by the Punong Barangay ordering the perpetrator to desist from committing acts under Section 5 (a) and (b) of this Act. A Punong Barangay who receives applications for a BPO shall issue the protection order to the applicant on the date of filing after ex parte determination of the basis of the application. If the Punong Barangay is unavailable to act on the application for a BPO, the application shall be acted upon by any available Barangay Kagawad. If the BPO is issued by a Barangay Kagawad the order must be accompanied by an attestation by the Barangay Kagawad that the Punong Barangay was unavailable at the time for the issuance of the BPO. BPOs shall be effective for fifteen (15) days. Immediately after the issuance of an ex parte BPO, the Punong Barangay or Barangay Kagawad shall personally serve a copy of the same on the respondent, or direct any barangay official to effect is personal service.20

2.

Temporary protection order (TPO) which refers to the protection order issued by the court on the date of filing of the application after ex parte determination that such order should be issued. A court may grant in a TPO any, some or all of the reliefs mentioned in this Act and shall be effective for thirty (30) days. The court shall schedule a hearing on the issuance of a PPO prior to or on the date of the expiration of the TPO. The court shall order the immediate personal service of the TPO on the respondent by the court sheriff who may obtain the assistance of

20

Sec 14., R.A. 9262

16

law enforcement agents for the service. The TPO shall include notice of the date of the hearing on the merits of the issuance of a PPO.21 3. Permanent protection order (PPO) which refers to protection order issued by the court after notice and hearing.22

Violation of the any of the Protection Orders is punishable by law. Section 10 states that Applications for BPOs shall follow the rules on venue under Section 409 of the Local Government Code of 1991 and its implementing rules and regulations. An application for a TPO or PPO may be filed in the regional trial court, metropolitan trial court, municipal trial court, municipal circuit trial court with territorial jurisdiction over the place of residence of the petitioner: Provided, however, That if a family court exists in the place of residence of the petitioner, the application shall be filed with that court.

Moreover, sensitive to the plight of many victim-survivors who constantly live in fear of the abuser, R.A. 9262 states clearly that the following persons may apply for a protection order on behalf of the victim-survivor:

a) parents or guardians of the offended party;

b) ascendants, descendants or collateral relatives within the fourth civil degree of consanguinity or affinity;

c) officers or social workers of the DSWD or social workers of local government units (LGUs);

d) police officers, preferably those in charge of women and children's desks;

e) Punong Barangay or Barangay Kagawad;

21 22

Sec. 15, R.A. 9262 Sec. 16, R.A. 9262

17

f) lawyer, counselor, therapist or healthcare provider of the petitioner;

g) At least two (2) concerned responsible citizens of the city or municipality where the violence against women and their children occurred and who has personal knowledge of the offense committed.23

THE IMPACT OF R.A. 9262

Despite the existence of laws protecting the rights of women and children such as R.A. 9262, there were still a handful of cases of violence against women and children committed across the country. One of the most common forms of violence experienced by women involves intimate partner violence.24 According to the 2008 National Demographic Health Survey, the social and economic background of a woman plays a crucial role of her experiencing domestic violence. This said survey, four years after the passage of RA 9262, also indicate that 2,004 or 22% of reported cases are seen among Filipino women aged 40 to 49, that 14% of women in the country have experienced physical violence from their husbands, that 8% have experienced sexual violence, and that 23% of women have experienced other forms of violence.25 This shows a recognizable decrease in comparison to the period prior to the passage of RA 9262 in the year 2004. 26

Emotional and other forms of non-personal violence are reported to be the most common type of spousal violence as it was found out that one in seven ever-married women experienced physical violence by their husbands while 8% experienced sexual violence.27 Reported cases of violations of RA 9262 continued to increase from 218 in 2004 to 9,021 cases in 2011 since its implementation. From 2010 to 2011, the number of violence against women reported cases to the Philippine National Police decreased by 14.3% which

23 24

Sec. 9, R.A. 9262 National Demographic Health Survey, 2008 as cited by Vesagas, P.J. in Violence against women. From: sunstar.com.ph 25 Supra 26 Statistics on violence against Filipino Women. Philippine Commission on Women. From: pcw.gov.ph 27 Supra

18

only occurred after a five-year upward trend starting from 2006 to 2010. The highest number of reported cases occurred during 2010 since 1997.28

However, reported incidence of physical injury was at 5,668 during the year 2001, three years before the passage of RA 9262. As evinced by these data, only instances of physical abuses have decreased since the passage of the aforesaid law. Other forms of abuses such as economic, emotional, and sexual abuses increased. This just goes to show that the fight for womens rights does not stop. The enforcement of RA 9262 along with the other similar laws should be strengthened through continuous information drives and campaigns in order to inform women [and children] of their basic rights. Guanzon29 offers the following problems with the implementation of RA 9262: (a) lack of specific appropriation in the law, (b) costly, lengthy litigation and corruption in the Judiciary and Prosecution Service, (c) no national free legal aid program for poor women, and (d) problems of conflict in the use of other laws and rules; retaliation suits.

The lack of specific appropriation in the law for training of the police, social workers, prosecutors and other government personnel and support services for poor women such as free legal aid, temporary shelter, services for children, and provisions for their sustenance or livelihood during litigation is argued to be the major obstacle in the implementation of the aforesaid law. Section 45 of the said law only provides that the appropriation shall be included in the annual General Appropriation Act, and the Gender Development Budget of the mandated agencies and local governments shall be used to implement services for victims. Despite the GAD budget (5% of their total budget), the elimination of VAW and training government personnel and support services for victims of VOW appears to be not the priority of legislators. Thus, there appears no systematic and comprehensive training on the Anti-VAWC Act and gender sensitivity seminars for police personnel, social workers, and prosecutors.30 This goes to show how large the impact of appropriation can be on the enforcement of our laws.

28

Philippine National Police - Women and Children Protection Center (WCPC) as cited in Statistics on violence against women and children. Philippine Commission on Women. From: pcw.gov.ph. 29 Supra 30 Id.

19

Costly and lengthy litigation is also one of the major obstacles that hinder the implementation of RA 9262. After its passage, womens human rights lawyers and women litigants continue to complain about the shortage of gender-sensitivity of some judges, of corruption in the Judiciary and in the prosecution service, of the ignorance of the law of many police officers and their lack of gender-sensitivity, and the high cost of litigation and delay in the proceedings. Even the Supreme Court Rule on VAWC appears to have some problems because it fails to provide a provision in cases of appeal despite its provision that indigent women or those in imminent danger may file for protection order without paying the filing fee.31

The absence of national free legal aid program for women also hinders the full implementation of the aforesaid law. Despite the provision of legal assistance to be provided to women, there is no legal aid problem for battered women. This is evinced by the lack of funds provided for legal aid and support services for women and their children in the Department of Social Welfare and Development. The prosecutors under the Department of Justice are available only for criminal prosecutors. Neither is the Public Attorneys Office that is tasked of assisting women in filing applications for protection orders, the said office cannot represent said women in civil cases since such office is only tasked to accused the criminal cases only.32

There also exists a problem in retaliation suits as husbands prosecuted under RA 9262 take advantage of other laws by taking refuge in them in defeating the rights of women under the aforesaid law, especially in cases of economic abuses. Such instances include conjugal and/or community property being hidden by husbands in corporations.33

Perhaps the challenge for the legislators is to address the issues and shortcomings in the law itself, whereas the challenge for the law enforcers in implementing the provisions of RA 9262 is to ensure strict implementation of such provisions.

31 32

Id. Id. 33 Id.

20

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American Psychiatric Association (1994). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders: DSM-IV. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association. Print.

Campanilla, Marlo. Special Penal Laws. Quezon City: Rex Printing , 2010. Print.

Commission on Women. (n.d.). Statistics on violence against Filipino women | Philippine Commission on Women. Philippine Commission on Women | National Machinery for Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment. Retrieved April 10, 2013, from http://pcw.gov.ph/statistics/201210/statistics-violence-against-filipino-women

Guanzon, M. R. (2012). Legal and Conceptual Framework of Battered Women Syndrome as a Defense. Philippine Law Journal, 86, 124 - 145.

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