agency mechanisms to respond to VAW; it aims to strengthen Commission’s
mandate as Gender Ombud;
b. Gather regional data on GBV, particularly highlighting issues faced by the
most marginalized and “excluded,” a focus on intersectionality and an analysis
that looks into women’s lived experience of GBV.
He then proceeded to present the more specific objectives which are as follows;
1. Map GBV referral mechanisms in two cities/ municipalities in the
Region’s areas of responsibilities;
2. Look into the effectiveness of these mechanisms in terms of
availability of facilities, kinds of services, and advocacy and partnership with
women’s organization;
3. Identify the challenges and barriers as well as document the good
practices in reporting and investigation, prosecution and legal assistance, and
providing support services;
4. Derive recommendations and proposals to improve the services and
facilities offered by mechanisms on the ground; and,
5. Focus on the responses to and experiences of the most vulnerable
and excluded.
After enumerating the objectives, he told the participant that the results of the mapping
will form part of the Commission’s Gender Based Violence Observatory and will be presented
during the Regional GBV Mapping.
Next to Mr. Balino’s talk was Atty. Anna Leah Romero, Atty. V of the Commission on
Human Rights, Region I who was introduced by the emcee, Ms. Quedado, to discuss on the
background of the work of CHR as Gender Ombud.
Before her talk, Atty. Romero expressed her gratefulness to the participants who came
even with some equally important appointments. She explained further why Lingayen was
chosen for the FGD. This was because in the Region, Pangasinan is the number 1 with the
most number of reported GBV. In the province of Pangasinan, Dagupan City is the first while the
Municipality of Lingayen is number 2. However, the CHR had already conducted GBV Mapping
in one city (San Fernando City, La Union last September 6, 2019) so this time, the CHR also
opted to conduct the FGD in one municipality-and this time the Municipality of Lingayen.
Atty. Anna Leah Romero first asked the participants why CHR is the Gender Ombud and
nobody answered. She then continued her discussion on the role of CHR as Gender Ombud, its
activities and programs, and provided an overview of the Gender Ombud Guidelines, she
started it by giving the objectives of her talk. She also presented the situation of women and the
LGBTQ persons in terms of human rights violence. She presented her talk through an audio
visual presentation and started by enumerating the following legal basis:
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