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AVAWC

The document discusses proposed amendments to the Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Act (RA 9262) of 2004 to make it more inclusive and protective of all genders. It notes that while the original law had good intentions, it operates under the assumption that men are always the abusers and has been exploited in ways that violate men's rights. Several proposed bills aim to expand the definition of violence to include electronic means and protect all persons regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. Defining and penalizing new forms of abuse like stalking and hacking is also discussed. Overall, the document argues that while the law aimed to protect marginalized groups, amendments are needed to ensure equal justice for all.

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156 views

AVAWC

The document discusses proposed amendments to the Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Act (RA 9262) of 2004 to make it more inclusive and protective of all genders. It notes that while the original law had good intentions, it operates under the assumption that men are always the abusers and has been exploited in ways that violate men's rights. Several proposed bills aim to expand the definition of violence to include electronic means and protect all persons regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. Defining and penalizing new forms of abuse like stalking and hacking is also discussed. Overall, the document argues that while the law aimed to protect marginalized groups, amendments are needed to ensure equal justice for all.

Uploaded by

daryll
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The “Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Act” of 2004 known as RA 9262 is a law

against men that needs urgent revisiting because despite its good intentions this law is gender-
biased and is becoming today an instrument of injustice for men.

1) RA 9262 operates under the biased premise that men are always the abusers and
perpetrators of domestic violence
a) VAWC Law created solely for the protection of women assumed to be the weaker sex
b) Women can file abuse against her husband, boyfriend, live-in partner, dating-partner,
or anyone whom she had a previous relationship with..
c) Studies support the fact that men and women both suffers from abusive relationships
d) Men are reluctant to claim abuse against their women partners
2) The law itself claimed gender equality but does not even care to record the statistics of
assaults and abuses against men.
a) In the Philippines, there is no statistics recorded for abuses against men
b) Men do not report abusive partners because of their machismo mentality and they
consider abusive behavior of women as normal
c) Most complaints do not get officially recorded because woman-against-man violence
are usually settled informally and would not progress to court
3) RA 9262 has very dire consequences because of its very broad boundaries that leave little
room for due process
a) The VAWC Law is a special law that put the rights of women over men.
b) Section 8 of the Act allowed women to file BPO’s. TPO’s and PPO’s that are biased
and oppressive for men
c) The “any act” clause and definition of abuse are so broad and vaguely not realistic
d) The very broad provisions and boundaries in the law violates due constitutional
process
4) The VAWC law is vulnerable to exploitation and manipulation and has a lot of loopholes
a) The loopholes of VAWC can be easily exploited and manipulated
b) Some women file abuse complaints because of monetary gains and personal vendetta
c) A man’s reputation, finances, and his entire life could be destroyed by the biases of
the VAWC law
5) Protections for all genders, including members of the LGBTQ, and not just limited to men.
The RA 9262 has certainly good intentions however amendments are very necessary to attain
equal justice for all genders.
Amending RA 9262 can be problematic in a society that still perpetuates misogyny and toxic
masculinity. When our leaders crack rape jokes and make off-color remarks about women, aims
for inclusivity seems to be a bad thing.
But is such an amendment really necessary? Can’t men protect themselves? RA 9262 is
important because it grants protections to a marginalized sector of society, but men aren’t
traditionally considered marginalized. That’s why any amendment would sound funny. The idea
that men need a law to protect them from abusive wives may sound outlandish but we know that
such abuse happens.
According to anti-domestic abuse advocate Emiliano Manahan, the incidence of male domestic
abuse is on the rise, affecting 12 to 15 couples out of 100. Current Philippine law is biased against
men in the area of domestic violence; men can file cases against their partners in the instance of
injuries but thanks to RA 9262, women can take legal action even with verbal abuse.
In separate studies published in 2007 and 2016, several men were interviewed about their
experiences with domestic abuse. The experiences varied, but all of them indicated escalating
forms of abuse starting with verbal attacks and put-downs that would graduate to physical attacks.
While women are statistically more prone to suffering from domestic abuse at the hands of their
male partners, women can be abusers, too.
The culture of machismo and stigma against being perceived as being weaker than women makes
men less likely to report domestic abuse. The mere fact that the term takusa is used as an insult
reinforces these biases. Many men who suffer domestic abuse also don’t see themselves as
victims, as they’re unable to recognize the abuse in their relationship especially when it isn’t
physical.
Women demanding that men turn over their salaries or ATM cards is a form of economic abuse
that isn’t specifically covered by current law. On the other hand, RA 9262 has provisions for men
withholding financial support. Women also use sex as a powerful means to exert control over their
partners, but there’s no provision that specifically covers the willful and malicious withholding of
sex as a form of abuse. The VAWC is clear about rape and sexual harassment, but in the clause
on psychological violence, the closest it comes is “acts or omissions likely to cause mental or
emotional suffering.”
The culture of machismo and protecting the male ego needs to give way to the fact that women
are equals to men, which means that women are just as capable of—if not necessarily statistically
inclined toward—domestic abuse. The idea that the bill is for henpecked husbands has to go,
even if it’s tongue-in-cheek, because it clouds the egalitarian stance of the bill. The bill takes all
the protections of the VAWC and actually expands it to the partners in a “heterosexual, lesbian,
gay, bisexual, queer, intersex, cisgender, and transgender” relationship.
The law must be updated to include protections for all genders, including members of the LGBTQ,
and not just limited to men. With so much pushback against the SOGIE bill, an amendment
addressing such would be a good move toward more inclusive laws without setting off debates
about who can use what bathroom.
An amendment must also seek to tackle Information Communication Technology or ICT-related
violence, a much-needed update in an electronically connected world. Penalty must also be
imposed on stalking, hacking, and even fake news.
There are a number of house bills that were proposed to amend and expand RA 9262.
Among those bills are the following:
1) DEFINING ELECTRONIC VAWC AS A PROHIBITED ACT
The CHRP fully supports the expansion of RA 9262 to cover such acts as proposed in HB 2664,
2592, and 5153. It is a high time that a legal measure be put in place that would prohibit and
punish perpetrators who use technology to inflict violence against women and children.

2) VIOLENCE AGAINST ALL PERSONS INCLUDING THOSE OF DIVERSE SOGIE


The CHRP agrees that “it is undoubted that victims of domestic violence do not only include
women and children” and that there are men and even members of the LGBT community who
find themselves in the middle of domestic violence which may come in many forms, be it physical,
sexual or emotional.”

3) CREATION OF A NATIONAL TASK FORCE ON VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN


The CHRP encourages evidence-based and well-researched policies and strategies, especially
in the field of law enforcement and Explanatory Note.The CHRP wishes to clarify certain issues
regarding the proposed mandate of the Task Force.

4) INSTITUTIONALIZATION OF AN ADDRESS CONDIDENTIALITY PROGRAM


The CHRP strongly supports the institutionalizing of an Address Confidentiality Program as
proposed in HB 1471 and 2592 and leaves it to the wisdom of the legislators on the best form on
which it could operationalized.

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