|
A
VISITING German actor and who is a star of a popular
television series in Germany has expressed dismay at the
way women and children in conflict with the law are
being treated in the Philippines.
Dietmar
Bär, who plays the role of Freddy Schenk, a German
policeman in the popular TV series Tatort—StraBen der
Welt (Crime Scene—Streets of the World) said children in
conflict with the law should be spared from the social
stigma of having to spend a day behind bars for petty
crimes.
Bär
costars with Klaus J. Behrendt, who plays the role of
Max Baauf, his partner in the police-detective series
much similar to the popular hit series CSI: Crime
Scene Investigation in the
United States.
After
his first exposure trip in the Philippines last year,
Bär and his colleagues decided to establish a foundation
named after the popular TV series to help the plight of
children in poor Asian countries like the Philippines.
The
German foundation is now closely working with the
Olongapo-based Preda (People’s Recovery, Empowerment
Development Assistance) Foundation, which was
established by Fr. Shay Cullen in 1973 to help save and
heal abused children and exploited women.
Bär is
back for a two-week exposure tour in the Philippines
again while shooting scenes for Tatort and documenting
how children in conflict with the law are being treated
in the
Philippines.
Bar said
he was shocked at seeing children as young as 12 being
detained for petty crimes. He said the government could
have assigned children in conflict with the law to a
home for street children, where they will be taken care
of by social workers.
Visiting
the detention cell of the Caloocan City Police Station
Tuesday afternoon, Bär said the least the government can
do is improve the facility to make it more humane.
While he
lauded efforts of the government to release minors from
jail and the passage of a law that increases the age
classifying “children” from 12 to 15, he said there’s a
lot more that needs to be done to protect children,
particularly those who are forced to work on the
streets.
Aside
from funding facility improvement in detention cells,
Bär said the government should allocate funds to
strengthen its social welfare and development program by
hiring more social workers and providing them with
support in terms of training and exposure in the
communities.
“I’ve
been to Santa Cruz [Manila] and saw the poor children who live miserably,” he said.
Bär said
a social worker who will take care of women and children
will guide them to be reintegrated with society and
become responsible members of society.
Marlyn
Carpio, 27, a social worker and volunteer of Preda
Foundation, said women and children in conflict with the
law often end up in jail when, in fact, they are
themselves victims of abuse and maltreatment.
Carpio
said the government should protect women as well as
children who are forced to commit petty crimes, yet
suffer forever the severe trauma of being jailed once
upon a time. |
