Commission on Human Rights INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. was urged by a lawmaker to “walk the talk” as his emotional speech for victims of child abuse contradicts the lack of funding for the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) response and the laws against these crimes.
At the House of Representatives plenary debates on the CHR’s proposed budget for 2025, Gabriela party-list Rep. Arlene Brosas underscored the irony of Marcos asking the government to crack down on online sexual abuse and exploitation of children (OSAEC) while CHR was not given funds to fight this crime.
Brosas also told the budget sponsor and Negros Oriental 1st District Rep. Jocelyn Limkaichong that the Anti-Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Materials (CSAEM) Act remains “unfunded.”
“Kitang kita naman natin, sa special laws — nandito ‘yong katibayan — unfunded siya para sa pagpapatupad ng CHR. Anyway, if the President wants to walk the talk, kailangan pong pondohan itong mga portion na ito,” she added.
(We can clearly see that for special laws — here is the proof — it is unfunded in terms of implementation on the part of CHR. Anyway, if the President wants to walk the talk, we should allocate funds for these portions.)
During the 2024 National Summit Against OSAEC on Monday, Marcos turned emotional after hearing a testimonial from a woman who was a victim of abuse when she was 13 years old. According to the Chief Executive, he feels a “deep sense of shame” over the continued occurrence of abuse against children.
He then noted that the government is implementing measures such as the anti-OSAEC and anti-CSAEM laws and the Expanded Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2022.
READ: Marcos: We must do more to stop online child abuse
During Limkaichong’s sponsorship speech for CHR’s budget, she admitted that the commission originally proposed a P1.799-billion budget, but it was trimmed down to P1.165 billion in the National Expenditures Program (NEP), which was eventually lowered to P1.109 in the General Appropriations Bill (GAB).
The NEP is the budget submitted by the executive branch, through the Department of Budget and Management, to Congress. The GAB, on the other hand, is the bill containing the proposed 2025 budget, as edited by the House committee on appropriations.
According to Limkaichong, the allocation for special laws amounting to P271.6 million was part of the CHR budget cut.
“Over time, Congress has expanded the CHR’s role and responsibilities through new legislation. However, despite this broader mandate, the CHR budget has not increased accordingly, instead, numerous recent laws have introduced additional responsibilities without providing the necessary funding to support them,” she said.
“At present, CHR has determined that P271.607 million is required to fund these special laws, broader mandates…I would like to add that I’m glad that there is a renewed commitment of this administration to CHR, and the cause of human rights. And for this reason Mr. Speaker, I would like to appeal to my colleagues that the CHR’s original proposed budget of P1.799 billion may be strongly considered,” she added.
This is not the first time that Brosas called out Marcos for the alleged lack of focus on child abuse prevention. On Monday night, Brosas said “tears are not enough” because funds are needed to prevent similar incidents.
“We need concrete actions and adequate funding to protect our children from online sexual abuse and exploitation. A lot of things need to be done, including upgrading latest technology and other processes to ensure justice for the victims,” Brosas said.
“We challenge President Marcos Jr. to relinquish his requested confidential and intelligence budget, in favor of significantly bolstering child protection initiatives. What is important now is to give enough funds for programs intended to protect children, and not questionable allocations that would only go straight to the pockets of some,” she added.