Still at it, 32 years hence

TALIKALA, an organization looking into the plight of prostituted women and girls in the city marked their 32nd year last Wednesday without fanfare.

The dimly lit interior of their office lent a pensive atmosphere to this conversation about how, after all these years, they never got tired of making a difference for this sector. Things are changing now, Jeannette Ampog, executive driector said. She has been with the organization for the past 27 years and has kept track of its many seasons.

She said what is evident now is that the form of sexual exploitation of women and girls has gone online and therefore becomes more challenging.

The organization has to learn new strategies to address this and upgrade the skills and expertise of their social workers who have been trained to assist those in the streets and not in cyber space. It is truly a daunting task for this organization even if they have reached out to partners in government.

“We can’t do it on our own,” Ampog said. In recent years they have worked closely with the city social services and health departments to carry out its mission.

Now, they are closely working with the barangay leaders, hoping to prevent women and girls from resorting to prostitution.

Despite the emerging challenges, Talikala vows to continue its work of promoting, protecting and defending the rights of women and children in prostitution and victims of all forms of sexual exploitation.