Aired (October 5, 2024): Babala: Sensitibo ang paksa.
Sa kabila ng mga umiiral na batas laban sa panggagahasa at pang-aabuso, may ilang kababaihan na hindi pa rin nakakamit ang hustisya. Sa halip na magsampa ng kaso, napipilitan ang mga biktima na makipag-areglo sa mga suspek kapalit ng katahimikan, alinsunod na rin sa kanilang nakagisnang tradisyon.
Ang ilang biktima, naglakas-loob na basagin ang kanilang katahimikan.
Panoorin ang buong kuwento sa special anniversary episode ng #IWitness kasama si Kara David.
#iBenteSingko
‘I-Witness’ is GMA Network's longest-running and most awarded documentary program. It is hosted by the country’s top documentarists— Howie Severino, Kara David, Atom Araullo, Mav Gonzales, and John Consulta. ‘I-Witness’ airs every Saturday, 10:15 PM on GMA Network.
Subscribe to youtube.com/gmapublicaffairs for our full episodes.
Sa kabila ng mga umiiral na batas laban sa panggagahasa at pang-aabuso, may ilang kababaihan na hindi pa rin nakakamit ang hustisya. Sa halip na magsampa ng kaso, napipilitan ang mga biktima na makipag-areglo sa mga suspek kapalit ng katahimikan, alinsunod na rin sa kanilang nakagisnang tradisyon.
Ang ilang biktima, naglakas-loob na basagin ang kanilang katahimikan.
Panoorin ang buong kuwento sa special anniversary episode ng #IWitness kasama si Kara David.
#iBenteSingko
‘I-Witness’ is GMA Network's longest-running and most awarded documentary program. It is hosted by the country’s top documentarists— Howie Severino, Kara David, Atom Araullo, Mav Gonzales, and John Consulta. ‘I-Witness’ airs every Saturday, 10:15 PM on GMA Network.
Subscribe to youtube.com/gmapublicaffairs for our full episodes.
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FunTranscript
00:00It is said that marriage is one of the happiest days in a woman's life.
00:30But what if the man you are going to marry is the man who also abused you?
01:00Hello! How are you? I am Kara.
01:12You are smiling. How many children do you have?
01:19I gave birth in November.
01:21In November?
01:23What will you name your baby?
01:26What will you name your baby?
01:29Oh, you will name your baby as well?
01:32Did you go to school?
01:34No.
01:36Oh, you didn't go to school?
01:38Why didn't you go to school?
01:40I didn't go to school.
01:42Oh, you didn't.
01:43Childish mind. That is the nature of the community of 25-year-old Dolores.
01:50She didn't have a real name.
01:52Why didn't you educate her?
01:54She was sick when she was young.
01:57Until now, she didn't go to school.
02:00What was her illness?
02:02She has a sore throat.
02:04Sometimes, she speaks well.
02:06Sometimes, she has a sore throat.
02:08Sometimes, she speaks differently.
02:09But behind the innocent smiles of the community of 25-year-old Dolores,
02:14there is a bitter past.
02:21My daughter went to their house.
02:24When she got home, she threw the food on the ground.
02:29Who raped her?
02:31I think she was around 50 years old.
02:34How old is your daughter?
02:35I think she was around 16 or 17 years old.
02:45Her father told her to take the sack from her aunt's house
02:52because they harvested corn and they were going to sow the corn.
02:57When she got home, her aunt pulled her from the corn field.
03:01She was forced to lie down.
03:08Ati Bing was the village's police officer at that time.
03:13Ati Bing accompanied Dolores and her father to report to the police.
03:19Two or three days passed.
03:22I was surprised.
03:24They called me and told me that the child was going to be arrested.
03:28What do you mean by that?
03:29What do you mean by arrest?
03:31It means that the child will not be able to file a case.
03:36We will just talk about it.
03:48In places far from the court and other government institutions,
03:52the problems are usually settled in the barangay or in the tribal council.
03:59If there is a problem in our area, IP versus IP, we will go there.
04:07The tribal council is a part of the culture of many indigenous people in the Philippines.
04:12They are the ones who are in charge of maintaining the order of the community
04:17and upholding the traditions of the village.
04:20In the case of robberies and other crimes, it is settled within the tribe.
04:30Actually, in the tradition, there is no rape.
04:35For example, if a man wants to rape a woman,
04:39he doesn't do it in a religious way.
04:43There is a saying, he doesn't do it in a peaceful way.
04:46But actually, he loves the woman very much.
04:47Sometimes, the woman doesn't want to do it.
04:51In mainstream, it is called rape.
04:54If the woman doesn't want to do it, there are two ways to do it.
04:58The first way is to sue her.
05:01The second way is to pay her.
05:03Pay her?
05:05Yes, that's what happens.
05:07How much is that?
05:09It depends on what the woman wants.
05:12Instead of suing her,
05:15Dolores' family accepted what they call paying her.
05:22Did they pay you?
05:24Yes, one horse and 6,000 pesos per horse.
05:32Why didn't you put her in jail?
05:33No, because the officials of the tribe,
05:37they also arranged for us to go to Duraypa.
05:42They were the ones who arranged it.
05:48One horse and 6,000 pesos.
05:52In exchange for all the pain,
05:55in exchange for their silence.
06:04Even though she was paid for her silence,
06:08Dolores' world did not remain silent.
06:13A few years later, the abuse happened again.
06:18So, based on this story, the woman said,
06:21she took advantage of me.
06:23She doesn't have a partner.
06:25I can't scream because she will scare me.
06:28So, she took advantage of me.
06:30When the woman arrived, I told her what was going to happen.
06:34But the woman still scolded me.
06:37Then, she sent me home to our barangay.
06:40This was the second time that I did this to her.
06:45It was just a minor injury,
06:48but you can feel the trauma from the abuse.
06:56And more than that, she was not believed and scolded
07:01because of what happened to her.
07:05If the child does not believe you,
07:08will you still be strong enough to speak to the judge?
07:13That's why, just like the first abuse,
07:16the complaint did not reach the court.
07:20She just accepted it.
07:21What can you do?
07:23You can't file a case.
07:25You don't know anything.
07:27You don't have money.
07:29They don't have anything.
07:31First of all, she can't deny it
07:33because she has a difference in thinking.
07:35She can't decide for herself.
07:40In March of this year, the third Calvary arrived.
07:45They noticed that Chani Dolores was growing up.
07:48She was pregnant with a neighbor.
07:59She said that she went to Rifao River,
08:02the river.
08:07Then, a man passed by her.
08:09He held her hand.
08:11He pulled her.
08:13He pulled me to the area where he took her.
08:17When he got there, what did he do to you?
08:20He made me lie down.
08:23Can't you say that it was a rape?
08:26For me, it was a rape
08:28because you know that she has a difference in thinking.
08:32You took advantage of her weakness.
08:36According to the law,
08:38rape is considered to be a sexual intercourse with a woman
08:42who has no right thinking.
08:43This includes those who have intellectual and mental disability.
08:50But because the Tribal Council again acted on Dolores' case,
08:55it was not considered a rape.
09:00And instead of fining the man,
09:03the Council decided to marry Dolores
09:07to the man who took advantage of her.
09:10A slap on the face of a woman
09:14if the man took advantage of her,
09:17the problem is not being built.
09:19But if the problem is being built,
09:21the problem is being faced,
09:23they got married,
09:25so the issue was stopped.
09:27There was no issue.
09:29It was all stopped because they got married.
09:31Yes.
09:33Because it seems like she was not raped anymore.
09:36But she was raped.
09:37That's what we think.
09:39All the shame was cut off because she was raped.
09:44She was punished.
09:46Yes, she was punished.
09:56Dolores is just one of the thousands of female victims of rape in the Philippines.
10:02According to the PNP,
10:03more than 10,000 women are the victims of rape in our country.
10:09This means that one woman is raped every hour here in the Philippines.
10:20The shocking thing is that not all of the victims reported what happened to them.
10:26The shocking thing is that not all of the victims reported what happened to them.
10:34Many remain silent,
10:36while others are forced to marry the man who raped them.
10:44They think that if a woman is raped,
10:46we think that if she is virginized,
10:50she will not be clean.
10:52That's what they think.
10:53That's what they think.
10:55So if she is married to the same person,
10:57the man,
10:59they think that it will lessen the impact of the shame.
11:05But isn't that an additional abuse?
11:09Yes.
11:10Because you are marrying your rapist.
11:12Exactly.
11:14The cycle of violence is repeated.
11:16According to the Ministry of Social Services and Development of Maguindanao,
11:20another reason why the Tribal Council is arranging rape cases
11:25is because of the tradition of RIDO.
11:28RIDO is like killing two birds with one stone.
11:33It's like fighting two families and then killing them.
11:36So what does this have to do with marriage and rape?
11:39So what does this have to do with marriage and rape?
11:42So that there will be no more fighting,
11:46they will just arrange it.
11:48Now, what if you don't want to get married
11:51because you don't really like the man?
11:53That's where the Tribal Council will discuss
11:58how to endorse the rape case in the mainstream.
12:05So the rape case will really be sued?
12:07Yes.
12:09But before the case is endorsed,
12:12the Tribal Council will call and ask if there is no way
12:17to fix these two families.
12:21Why does it have to be fixed?
12:23The man committed a crime.
12:25We cannot avoid it because that is our tradition as a tribe.
12:30Because if it is not fixed,
12:33many lives will be lost.
12:36The bitter truth is,
12:39for the peace of the community,
12:42the victim's mouth needs to be shut.
12:49I only talked to Dolores' father for a moment,
12:53but I can feel the pain in his every word.
12:57I know that he did not like the rape of his son.
13:02Why did you just let him get married?
13:03I just let my son get married.
13:06Yes.
13:08Why didn't you sue him?
13:11Why didn't you file a case?
13:13No.
13:15We are poor.
13:17We have nothing.
13:26It's hard to be poor.
13:29But no matter how far they are from justice,
13:33there are people who will fight hard
13:37to break the silence.
13:44If they are there now,
13:47the siblings we are going to hide under the name
13:51of Marisol and Jasmine will be happy.
13:56There is no trace of the grudge they held last year.
14:00Last year,
14:02in their uncle's hands.
14:07We chose not to interview the two children
14:12because we know how hard it is
14:16for the traumatic event to happen to you.
14:20So, instead of talking to the two children
14:23and interviewing them,
14:25I will just read their vows.
14:31I don't remember when the first incident happened,
14:35but what I do remember is in May, in Gingan.
14:39I was there because we were going to Balunan to take a bath.
14:46I was with my brother to take a bath.
14:50My uncle followed us,
14:53and when he got closer,
14:55he took my brother home.
15:01And what did he do to you at that time?
15:06He stripped me,
15:08he took off my clothes,
15:11and then he took off his shorts,
15:15and he hugged me,
15:18and he laid me down.
15:21He said,
15:23I will not tell anyone what he did,
15:26because my parents will be killed.
15:28I cried,
15:30because what he did to me was painful.
15:36I had to stop reading many times.
15:42The child's trauma was too severe,
15:45especially knowing that Marisol was only 10 years old at the time.
15:59A few months later,
16:01the abuse happened again.
16:04Witness the silence of the people
16:07at the horrible crime that was committed against Marisol
16:11and her 5-year-old brother,
16:14Hasmin.
16:16It's dark here.
16:18Based on the voices of the victims,
16:21here in this dangerous place,
16:24there are many witnesses who witnessed another instance of abuse.
16:29You will notice,
16:31actually, it's still early,
16:33but because this place is so dangerous,
16:36it's dark, it's easy to hide,
16:39and no one can hear you even if you scream.
16:42Based on the voices of the two children,
16:45this is where they took their brother.
16:55My younger brother was the first to walk.
17:00My uncle followed us,
17:04and I saw that...
17:06Oh, my God.
17:12So, he witnessed...
17:16He saw that his uncle was abusing his younger brother.
17:24After that, my uncle took my brother away,
17:28and he used me.
17:33What happened next?
17:36He raped me again.
17:42While all of this was happening,
17:45the whole family was unaware of the abuse against the children.
17:51They were given money.
17:54The children were invited to look at their phones.
17:57That's what he did.
17:59Then, he carried them.
18:01He put them on his body,
18:03the two of them.
18:05Even his mother could see my brother,
18:08that's how she could see what he was doing.
18:10At that time, we thought he was a good person.
18:15But he was different from the other children.
18:20That's why the abuse was repeated three times.
18:25In the absence of five-year-old Hasmin...
18:30At our house, my sister was outside.
18:34My mother was not there.
18:36My uncle arrived.
18:38He went inside and lay on the floor.
18:41He held me,
18:43and he put me in his arms.
18:45Then, he took off my clothes,
18:47and he took off his clothes.
18:53But there was a limit to all the evil.
18:59Last July,
19:01Marisol was sleeping in her aunt's house.
19:06While she was sleeping,
19:08her uncle raped her again.
19:11Her aunt saw what her husband was doing.
19:17I checked their bed.
19:20I said, why is it wet?
19:23That was my reaction.
19:25I looked at the child.
19:27His shirt was really wet.
19:29He said to me,
19:31I've been using a towel for a long time.
19:36Rosa complained to the mother of the children.
19:42But it's not easy to accept the truth.
19:46Why did you fight?
20:00Until she witnessed the abuse.
20:16He was out for a long time, ma'am.
20:19He said he went to the bathroom,
20:21but he didn't come back.
20:23No.
20:25Where did you see your son?
20:27In the other pool, ma'am.
20:29There was a fish tank.
20:31It was full of white things, ma'am.
20:34It was full of white things.
20:36Yes.
20:38I asked the children,
20:40where are you?
20:42Why have you been out for so long?
20:43I asked the children,
20:45where are you?
20:47The children cried.
20:50The children said,
20:53I've been using a towel for a long time.
20:56The children said.
20:58Oh, my God.
21:00Why is it like this?
21:02Our life is hard.
21:04Why is it like this?
21:06It's like this.
21:08It's like this.
21:10It's like this, ma'am.
21:13You're so far away, ma'am.
21:15That's enough.
21:17You just sent us here.
21:19Yes.
21:22Okay, that's enough.
21:24It's painful.
21:26Okay.
21:28In my heart.
21:30Yes.
21:32It's okay.
21:34It's okay.
21:36That's why I told the children,
21:38to finish their studies
21:40so that you can come back.
21:43That's why this happened to you.
21:45Yes, ma'am.
21:47Okay, ma'am.
21:49I won't ask you anymore.
21:51I'm sorry, ma'am.
21:53I'm sorry, ma'am.
21:55Every mother wants her child to be away from her womb.
21:59But what if the monster
22:02is inside your home?
22:06What happened was painful.
22:08We know that.
22:10But we can get up.
22:11We can get up.
22:13We can get up.
22:15This is how we live, ma'am.
22:17Yes.
22:19That's why
22:21we will fight.
22:24Even if it's hard.
22:26This is how we live, ma'am.
22:28You will fight.
22:30Yes.
22:32No matter how hard it is for them,
22:34the mother, Lydia,
22:36took the case.
22:38Even the wife of the suspect,
22:39took the case.
22:41She stood by the children
22:43and joined the complaint.
22:45I thought of justice
22:47for my nieces and nephews.
22:49That's what I thought.
22:51I told myself
22:53that I swear to myself
22:55that I will not be quiet
22:57until I finish this problem.
23:01The children's cousin
23:03also helped in filing the complaint.
23:06Why is it important to you
23:07to fight this case?
23:09I am afraid
23:11because
23:13no matter how painful it is for them,
23:15what happened to me was painful too.
23:18Because...
23:20First of all,
23:23we are poor.
23:26We can't get close to anyone.
23:28We don't know anyone up there.
23:31We can't get close to anyone up there.
23:33We can't get close to anyone up there.
23:34We can't get close to anyone up there.
23:37The suspect tried to settle the matter
23:39through the Tribal Council.
23:42According to the suspect,
23:44this is shameful for the tribe.
23:46So it's better
23:48to not file the case
23:50and remain silent.
23:52The suspect threatened them several times.
23:54He told me
23:56that he will burn us.
23:58I told him,
24:00why would he burn us?
24:02We did nothing wrong to you.
24:04Why would he burn me?
24:06My clothes were stained.
24:08He told me,
24:10you are a brave woman.
24:12What are you bragging about?
24:14But despite the threat,
24:16Mother Lydia and her family
24:18bravely fought.
24:20They did not give in to the arrest.
24:23They strongly defended
24:25the rights of
24:27Hasmin and Marisol.
24:29How can we get the truth
24:31if we are forced
24:32to settle this matter?
24:34What about the rights
24:36of the victims?
24:38It's better
24:40for us to do this.
24:42We can settle this right away.
24:44We are also human beings.
24:46If there is a problem,
24:48we need justice.
24:50We are also human beings.
24:52We are all humans.
24:54We also have rights.
24:59With the help of social workers
25:00looking for a lawyer
25:02to handle the case,
25:06will the children's prison
25:08be punished?
25:12Or will it be returned
25:14to its original state?
25:24A few months later,
25:26Hasmin's prison
25:28was imprisoned
25:30by Hasmin and Marisol.
25:32Their children
25:34are pitiful.
25:36But Mother,
25:38he is already in prison.
25:40That's what's important.
25:42I don't want them to go out.
25:44But what's important
25:46is that he is already in prison.
25:48That's what's important.
25:50The children
25:52will study.
25:54They can still live.
25:58The good thing
26:01is that you got justice.
26:05Dolores and her siblings
26:07Hasmin and Marisol
26:09have not changed.
26:14According to the
26:16World Population Review,
26:18one in every three women
26:20in the world
26:22has experienced sexual abuse.
26:25One billion women
26:27are victimized
26:28by sexual abuse.
26:33But only 10%
26:35of these women
26:37have the courage
26:39to speak up.
26:43Many will remain silent
26:45because of fear,
26:47because of shame,
26:49because of the slow
26:51course of justice.
26:53The wounds of the women
26:55who were victims
26:56of sexual abuse.
26:58We always tell them
27:00not to be afraid,
27:02not to be afraid,
27:04because there are government
27:06officers who are very willing
27:08to help them.
27:10To give strength to the
27:12victims,
27:14the local government
27:16of Maguindanao
27:18built a rescue center
27:20where the rape victims
27:22can stay safe.
27:24They also hired
27:26social workers
27:28from the community
27:30and the Tribal Council
27:32to continue
27:34the investigation
27:36of crimes like rape.
27:38The Tribal Council
27:40clarified that
27:42they are just mediators.
27:44They will not stop
27:46a family
27:48if they really want
27:50to file a case.
27:52It depends.
27:54If they don't agree,
27:56they will not file a case.
27:58As a Tribal Council,
28:00you are the only ones
28:02who are in agreement
28:04with them.
28:06But the ultimate decision
28:08is still the family,
28:10the victims.
28:12But they asked
28:14the government
28:16to help the victims
28:18so that justice
28:20can be done
28:22faster and more effectively.
28:24If you file a case,
28:26you have to pay
28:28an acceptance fee.
28:30So where will we get
28:32the money?
28:34We are just poor.
28:38I hope they will see
28:40that rape is rape.
28:42It cannot be paid
28:44with money
28:46or with actions.
28:48Rape is rape.
28:50Rape is a public crime.
28:53How are the children
28:54doing now?
28:58Are they studying?
29:01They said they were
29:03afraid before.
29:06I told them,
29:08don't be afraid.
29:10Let's fight.
29:22Are you ready
29:24to sign this?
29:26There are three pages.
29:28What you are saying
29:30is just the truth.
29:32Then she signed
29:34her will.
29:36If you can see
29:38the will of the child
29:40and her signature,
29:42you know,
29:44this is just
29:46a 10-year-old girl
29:48who cannot
29:50write properly.
29:52She is heavy
29:54for a 10-year-old
29:56girl
29:58and for a 5-year-old
30:00girl
30:02to experience
30:04rape four times
30:06from their uncle.
30:11It's too heavy.
30:12I can't do it.
30:22For more than 20 years,
30:24in Eyewitness,
30:26this is probably
30:28one of the hardest stories
30:30I have written.
30:35As a mother,
30:37as a woman,
30:39it is hard to accept
30:40that
30:42there are still women
30:44who are not safe in the community,
30:46who are not safe
30:48in their own homes.
30:50Abuse continues
30:52and the worst thing is
30:54you don't have a voice
30:56to fight it.
30:58But I know
31:00that it's not the end of the world.
31:03As long as there are agencies
31:05who are forced to bring justice
31:07to the little ones,
31:08as long as there are mothers
31:10who are strong-willed
31:12to fight,
31:14as long as there are women
31:16who are silent
31:18to shout for justice,
31:20we will continue
31:22to resist.
31:28At one point,
31:30Dolores was stabbed
31:32in her uterus.
31:34Her son was a boy.
31:35I hope she knows
31:37that silence
31:39is priceless.
31:41I hope she learns
31:43to fight for justice.
31:45I hope she grows up
31:47with respect
31:49for women.
31:56I am Cara David
31:58and this is Eyewitness.
32:05EYEWITNESS
32:35EYEWITNESS