The Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Action Center (DOJAC) held a lecture set to be the first in a series which aims to empower people in the fight against violence and discrimination.
The inauguration of the Justice in Action Lecture Series featured experts, advocates, and community leaders who tackled the salient issues of rape and the Safe Spaces Act with law students from the San Sebastian College of Law.
“It is heartbreaking to know that for every case we hear or study about, countless others remain silent and unreported, trapped in shadows of fear and stigma. We see only the tip of the iceberg, while beneath the surface lies a vast ocean of suffering and unspoken truths,” Justice Undersecretary Margarita Gutierrez said of sexual abuse and its obscured victims.
“We must be the voices for those who cannot speak, the advocates for those who have been silenced by fear,” she added.
She invited the session participants to take an active role in the cause for “a safer and more equitable society.”
“Let’s remember—responsibilidad nating lahat ang magtaguyod ng mas malalakas na proteksyon, suportahan ang mga biktima, at tiyakin ang mas ligtas na kinabukasan para sa lahat (it is our responsibility to advocate for stronger protection, to support victims, and ensure the future is safer for all). Together, let’s be the change our society desperately needs,” Gutierrez urged.
The lecture was borne from collaborations among Undersecretary Gutierrez, Assistant State Prosecutor (ASP) and DOJAC Program Director Joan Carla Guevarra, former Senior Assistant State Prosecutor (SASP) Lilian Doris Alejo, MindNation’s Cat Trivino and staff who made the arrangements for the series, and civil society and women’s rights organization Kababaihan who lent a hand in bringing in the students.
DOJ head Jesus Crispin Remulla gave his full support in similar future endeavors and is looking forward to attending the next Justice in Action lecture.
