“After waiting for more than 50 years, we are now on the threshold of fulfilling our government’s responsibility towards the CICLs (children in conflict with the law) as solidified and institutionalized by national laws that spanned generations and national leaders.”
This was emphasized by Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Rex Gatchalian during the ceremonial groundbreaking of the country’s first agricultural camp for CICLs on Wednesday (May 7) at the Inagawan Sub-Colony in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan.
Secretary Gatchalian said the 10-hectare facility will realize the promise of Presidential Decree No. 603 of 1974 or the Child and Youth Welfare Code to establish an agriculture or forestry camp for CICLs to enable them to serve their sentence instead of confinement in a regular penal institution. This is also mandated under Section 51 of Republic Act No. 9344 or the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act (JJWA).
“The agricultural camp that will soon emerge from this land will potentially provide the CICLs with the much needed help to start fresh with new learnings and the opportunities to become productive citizens of the country,” Secretary Gatchalian said.
Applying the whole-of-nation approach, the DSWD chief also commended the agency’s collaboration with the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor), the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), and the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Council (JJWC) for ensuring that the agricamp will be at par with international standards, prioritizing the best interest of children.
Aptly describing this joint endeavor of the three agencies, Secretary Gatchalian said : “This is a project where hardware and software meet.
Where his [DPWH] engineers and our social workers will come together. Where his [DPWH] gravel and sand will come together with our intervention modules and our case management tools.”
The programs and interventions that will be provided to the CICLs in the agricamp include education, vocational training, psychosocial support, and agricultural work.
The facility is slated for completion by the end of 2025, with its inauguration anticipated in the first quarter of 2026.
Other high ranking government officials present at the event were Governor Victorino Dennis Socrates and Congressman Jose Alvarez of
Palawan; and Commissioner Beda Epres of the Commission on Human Rights (CHR).
Attendees also include Associate Justice Wilhelmina Jorge-Wagan of the Court of Appeals; Undersecretaries Eric Ayapana and Roberto Bernardo of the DPWH; Undersecretary Deo Marco and Assistant Secretary Majken Anika Gran-Ong of the Department of Justice (DOJ).
DSWD officials who joined the groundbreaking were Undersecretary Emmeline Aglipay-Villar and Asst. Secretary Elaine Fallarcuna of the DSWD’s International Affairs, Attached and Supervised Agencies (ASAs), and Executive Director Tricia Clare Oco of the JJWC. (AKDL)