(Photo from Unsplash)

A youth group of gender equality activists and victim-survivors of sexual offenses on campuses called out the Department of Education (DepEd) for “failing” to provide the results of their investigation into the multiple cases of sexual abuse in Bacoor National High School (BNHS) in the province of Cavite. Enough Is Enough (EIE), in a statement, said it reached out to DepEd on June 15 to seek full public disclosure of the result of its investigation and to explain how the department plans to ensure the safety of the students. While the group was referred to “concerned offices for appropriate action,” EIE said that it “has not heard back” from the department. “Students and parents alike demand concrete actions to address our grievances. DepEd’s silence on this matter proves their incompetence in keeping schools a safe space and protecting learners,” said EIE lead convenor Sophia Reyes. In June, EIE received reports that one of the accused teachers “aggressively stalked” a BNHS student, a minor, in the male comfort room of a mall in Bacoor, as revealed in a now-deleted Facebook post. Last May, EIE said that he was reportedly seen inside BNHS and was “even taking selfies with fellow teachers.” “How can we trust their supposed commitment to rid campuses of predators and enablers, when DepEd, once again, compromises our safety by allowing abusers to roam our schools?” said “Andrew” (not his real name). He was one of the victim-survivors from BNHS. In September last year, the DepEd said it has filed administrative cases against five of the predators linked to grooming and sexual harassment of students in BNHS. However, EIE said that according to its sources, they have identified eleven teachers preying on students. “It seems that filing those administrative cases was only a knee-jerk reaction,”  said “Andrew.” “Without any transparency on the results or progress of their investigation, the DepEd was only waiting for the issue to die down,” he added.

Steady rise

Meanwhile, Reyes claimed that since the BNHS issue, there has been a “steady rise” in reports of sexual abuse in senior high schools including the rape of a 13-year-old female in the music room of a private school in Quezon City last April. EIE, formed at the height of the uproar after sexual abuse at the BNHS became public, has pushed for predators and enablers to be charged with criminal and administrative cases. The group is also pushing for the revocation of the professional licenses of these predators and that they should be “blacklisted and barred” from employment that involves vulnerable sections of the population. EIE is also pushing for the establishment of a national registry of offenders.