The petition is bereft of merit. Enacted in 2004, RA 9262 is a landmark legislation that defines and criminalizes acts of violence against women and their children (VAWC) perpetrated by women's intimate partners, i.e., husband, former husband, or any person who has or had a sexual or dating relationship, or with whom the woman has a common child, or against her child whether legitimate or illegitimate, within or without the family abode, which result in or is likely to result in, inter alia, economic abuse.25 The said law defines economic abuse as follows: Section 3. Definition of Terms. - x x x. xxxx D. "Economic abuse" refers to acts that make or attempt to make a woman financially dependent which includes, but is not limited to the following: 1. withdrawal of financial support or preventing the victim from engaging in any legitimate profession, occupation, business or activity, except in cases wherein the other spouse/partner objects on valid, serious and moral grounds as defined in Article 73 of the Family Code; 2. deprivation or threat of deprivation of financial resources and the right to the use and enjoyment of the conjugal, community or property owned in common; 3. destroying household property; 4. controlling the victim's own money or properties or solely controlling the conjugal money or properties. xxxx As may be gathered from the foregoing, "economic abuse" may include the deprivation of support of a common child of the man-accused and the woman-victim, whether such common child is legitimate or not.26 This specific act is penalized by Section 5 (e) of RA 9262, pertinent portions of which read: Section 5. Acts of Violence Against Women and Their Children. - The crime of violence against women and their children is committed through any of the following acts: xxxx (e) Attempting to compel or compelling the woman or her child to engage in conduct which the woman or her child has the right to desist from or to desist from conduct which the woman or her child has the right to engage in, or attempting to restrict or restricting the woman's or her child's freedom of movement or conduct by force or threat of force, physical or other harm or threat of physical or other hann, or intimidation directed against the woman or child. This shall include, but not limited to, the following acts committed with the purpose or effect of controlling or restricting the woman's or her child's movement or conduct: