Arroyo launches Women and Children Protection Center of PNP

By Ronron
February 6, 2008

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo launched on
Wednesday the Women and Children Protection Center
(WCPC) of the Philippine National Police (PNP) in
response to calls for the agency to be more gender
sensitive.

Arroyo opened the WCPC office in Camp Crame, Quezon
City, highlighting the celebration of the PNP’s 17th
founding anniversary.

“I am glad that after ordering the hiring of 2,000
policewomen in 2006, equivalent of four battalions,
now we can unveil the center as the country’s first
all-woman police outpost. And I was saying that this
should also serve as a prototype station women’s
desk,” Arroyo said in her speech during the
anniversary program.

The WCPC will be headed by Chief Supt. Yolanda
Tanigue, the first female PNP officers to be promoted
to star rank. It will be equipped with two police
patrol cars with a driver, a scene of the crime
operative, a social worker, and a medico-legal
officer.

The WCPC mobile units are particularly tasked to
respond to sex-related crime and violence committed
against women and children.

PNP chief Gen. Avelino Razon, Jr. said the WCPC was
initially activated last October 15, 2007, but it was
under the Directorate for Investigation and Detective
Management then.

To date, Razon said there are already 1,809 WCPC units
all over the country, from the regional offices down
to the smallest police station.

“I am happy to inform our women and children sector
that we are taking further steps to assure your safety
and protection from all kinds of abuses, including
human trafficking, domestic violence and crimes
against children,” Razon said.

Arroyo directed every WCPC unit to “showcase a woman’s
touch,” in “cool, pastel colors or feminist purple,”
with “victim-friendly reception rooms and “shelves
that will display help-literature on domestic
violence.”

“And it should have a clean comfort room,” she said.

Aside from inaugurating the WCPC, Arroyo also
inspected the female SWAT members, female Civil
Disturbance Management (CDM) members, and female
Special Action Force members who lined up in front of
the WCPC.

“They should be able to respond to extreme cases of
domestic violence when domestic violence is involved,”
Arroyo said.

“We want to show that police girl power is not limited
to sisterly counseling. It packs a mean firepower as
well,” she added.

The PNP currently has some 10,000 female personnel
nationwide.

In 2007, 7,669 cases of violence against women, and
4,705 cases of child abuse and exploitation were
reported to the PNP./DMS