DOJ, DSWD join forces to assure financial help, rehabilitation of children who are victims of violent crimes
The Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) signed on Tuesday, July 15, an agreement that will ensure not only justice to children who are victims of violent crimes but also timely financial assistance, healing, and rehabilitation.
DOJ Undersecretary Deo L. Marco said that under the memorandum of agreement (MOA), a referral system will be set up between the DOJ and the DSWD for assistance and support to child victims who are under the custody in DSWD-managed residential care facility.
“This advances our shared objective of delivering holistic justice, one that does not end in the prosecution of offenders but extends to the healing and rehabilitation of victims,” Marco explained.
He said that while both the DOJ and the DSWD are aware that financial assistance cannot compensate for the trauma and lost time, “the mechanism can help further victims of violent crimes see the face of tomorrow with a brighter life.”
DSWD Undersecretary Monina Josefina H. Romualdez said that “the protection and welfare of children are paramount in our society.”
Romualdez said that with the provision of financial assistance, the victims can address their medical, psychological, educational and social needs, among other things.
Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Anna Noreen T. Devanadera, chief of administration of the Board of Claims (BOC) under the DOJ, noted that the beneficiaries of the program are mostly minor victims of sexual abuse, human trafficking, and online sexual abuse and exploitation whose primary perpetrators are their parents or legal guardians and have been turned over to the DSWD shelters for custody and support services.
Devanadera explained that the mechanism created under the MOA “outlines clear procedures, responsibilities and points of coordination, ensuring that every minor victim receives the benefits from the BOC and the DSWD at the right time and with compassion and care.”
The MOA details how the DOJ and the DSWD will work together, communicate, document, refer, follow up, and support each other for the best interest of the child, she also said.