The women of the PNP in Bagong Pilipinas

ICELEBRATED the kick-off ceremonies of the 2024 National Women’s Month with the Philippine National Police National Capital Region Police Office (PNP-NCRPO) on March 4. I was invited by the regional director, MGen. Jose Nartatez, to speak at the PNP-NCRPO Monday flag-raising ceremony at Camp Bagong Diwa.

The morning started with Foyer Honors, where I walked with Col. Donna Villareal, the chief regional legal service of NCR, and the regional director’s wife Mary Rose Nartatez. The regional director received me and introduced the senior officers of the PNP-NCRPO. Exemplary women officers and personnel were given awards and medals for their public service, courage, ingenuity and dedication. An unforgettable highlight was the Pass-in-Review parade march by snappy women police, representing the NCRPO, Special Action Forces and the BJMP.

A 2023 PNP report shows that of the total 229,623 PNP cadets and non-uniformed personnel, 21.51 percent, or 49,400, are women. In the PNP Officer Corps, 17.87 percent are women; 2,820 women are assigned to leadership positions at different levels of the organization. Gender equality and an inclusive society are part of the Bagong Pilipinas vision of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

I mentioned in my speech that we are lucky in the Philippines in that women play prominent roles in both the public and private sectors in leadership roles. We’ve already had two women presidents. In President Marcos’ Cabinet, 26 percent are women. Some of the CEOs of our country’s top corporations are women.

The 2023 World Economic Forum Global Gender Gap Index shows the Philippines ranking 16 out of 146 countries. The Philippines is the most gender-equal country in Asia. The US is at number 43, and Japan at 125. However, Filipino women continue to struggle with violence against women and children, human trafficking, the need for health care, especially maternal health, and all the trials associated with poverty. There’s still a lot that needs to be done. In Bagong Pilipinas, the roadmap to development, there are strategies and programs to address the needs of all sectors, communities and citizens, regardless of gender. As the Philippines continues to forge forward on a high-growth economic path, we are also building an environment that gives equal opportunities to all Filipinos.

In Bagong Pilipinas, the government is working at improvements in education, support for our men and women in uniform, technical and financial support for agriculture, building sustainable communities, making access to energy affordable, investing in clean energy, improving universal health care by building regional specialty hospitals, and many more. Our government cannot do nation-building alone. This is where I see the role of women amplified. At the community level, we see women in leadership roles successfully running programs and enterprises. And in the police force, we see the active and comforting presence of the PNP Women and Children Protection Center doing the difficult and sensitive job of addressing violence against women and children.

The life I had before I joined the Marcos administration included a focus on humanitarian assistance and advocacy for women’s and children’s rights, child protection, and maternal health. Over the years, I have visited different parts of the country — usually the most marginalized communities to address the difficult issues in child protection, such as online sexual abuse and exploitation, ending child rape by raising the minimum age of sexual consent, and juvenile justice.

The job of the PNP is physically, mentally and emotionally challenging. One example of the most difficult but very important job of policewomen is fighting online sexual abuse and exploitation of children.

OSEC, or Osaec, is an egregious form of violence against the most vulnerable sector of the population, our children. The Philippines is feared to be a top global source of abusive material, and Filipino children are targeted. The involvement of the children’s own families as crime facilitators and the increasing number of foreign perpetrators make OSEC a more complex crime.

I met a policewoman who told me that rescuing children from OSEC was the hardest thing to do. Seeing innocent children being taken away from their abusive and complicit family members or caregivers gave them a sense of relief, but it also made them feel conflicted. Because for these innocent children, those facilitators and perpetrators, though family members are also the only ones they know who can care for them. One of them told me, almost in tears, “Sana ako na lang mag-alaga sa mga bata (I wish I could just take care of those children).”

The PNP is increasing the presence of policewomen in the Women and Children Protection Center, which is also in the SAF. This is in line with the PNP’s commitment to continue engagement, increase presence, and inculcate harmonious relationships with communities. Women can encourage other women to report violence against them at home. There really are things that women can do better. And that is not a gender bias.