Sara Duterte urged to lead probe into sexual abuse allegations at PHSA
MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte, also education chief, should lead a multi-agency probe into the abuse allegations of former students of the state-run high school for young artists, a child rights group said Friday.
This comes more than a week after an in-depth report from VICE World News on allegations of sexual, verbal and emotional abuse by teachers and staff from the Philippine High School for the Arts (PHSA) was published.
In a statement, CRN, the largest alliance advocating for children's rights laws in the country, said Duterte should partner with the Justice department and the Commission on Human Rights for the investigation.
"We ask Vice President Duterte to immediately act on these concerns as the newly minted education chief," CRN Convenor Romeo Dongeto said, referring to the allegations of abuse.
"Our government leaders, especially in DepEd (Department of Education), should be the ones to first recognize the fact that the trauma expressed by PHSA alumni who told their story to VICE World News is valid and warrants justice," he added.
"In the pursuit of justice for child abuse, forgive and forget should not be the mantra. Trauma from these abuses does not simply dissipate like magic after graduating from the school where they experienced it."
PHSA is an attached agency of the DepEd, which has not yet released a statement on the matter, as of writing.
Beyond the investigation, the government must also review its existing laws to see if other schools across the country have experienced the same, and look at immediate actions that can be taken, Dongeto said.
'Don't force them to go public'
In response to the Vice News report, the Laguna-based Philippine High School for the Arts (PHSA) issued a statement on July 5, saying that it sympathized with "alumni who complained of past abuses", but cautioned against making generalizations about the school as a place of abuse.
It claimed it was unfair that they were being portrayed as a haven for abuse. It said, however, that it is working to provide its students with a safe learning environment.
In its statement, PHSA said that alleged victims may file complaints with their schools' designated committees, which can help them on the format under the civil service rules. The school said they can choose to do this, even as they have already been informed to file their complaints through the "proper forum."
"Rest assured in dealing with disciplinary matters, PHSA has its own processes which have been duly recognized by the Civil Service Commission, Commission on Human Rights, the Cultural Center of the Philippines and the Department of Education," it said.
On Friday, CRN took exception to the way the school asked alleged abuse victims to seek help from the institution, which may lead to them getting traumatized again.
"They should know that forcing victims to come out publicly to report may lead to re-traumatization. We reiterate our call for PHSA to conduct its investigation and hold responsible parties to account at the most immediate time," CRN's Dongeto said.
For the group, the burden of proof lies with the school, and not with the victims.
"It is the institution's moral, social, and ethical responsibility to help the victims. A single allegation is sufficient to launch an investigation. PHSA should be taking a more active role and not passively wait for victims to come and complain," Dongeto said.
READ: ‘Nakapanlulumo’: Alarms raised over alleged abuses in Laguna boarding school
According to him, the numerous disclosures show that the institution did not have effective child protection measures in place. — With a report from Xave Gregorio
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