Overview Passed in 2009, the Magna Carta of Women has since designated the Commission on Human Rights as the Gender and Development Ombud. The law sets out its specific mandates for the Commission which the Commission must faithfully and fully implement: among them, promoting and protecting women‟s rights through creative approaches in education while honing investigation of rights violations committed by persons not only from the public but equally from the private sectors. As the Commission capacitates itself in the investigation of such violations, its recommendations of appropriate remedial measures to other agencies of government must be closely monitored to ensure effective implementation. The Commission introduced the Gender Based Violence Project in the community women with the objectives stated hereunder to wit; ● Harness the capacities of the Commission‟s 16 Regional Offices in monitoring functionality of referral mechanisms, providing recommendations and influencing enhanced functionality and responsiveness of local inter-agency mechanisms to respond to VAW; It aims to strengthen Commission‟s mandate as Gender Ombud; ● 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. Pursuant to its project the Commission on Human Rights conducted series of Four (4) Focused Group Discussion (FGD) in 2 Municipalities at Bunawan and San Francisco, Agusan del Sur. The focused group discussion is meant to gather data, basis and evidence together with its documentation to support the raising of awareness to end Violence against Women (VAW). The facilitator, Atty. Aurora Cembrano, with the CHR Regional Director Atty. Jerefe TubigonBacang, invited people from the Sub-Committee on VAW, Women‟s Organizations, Academic Representatives, Government Agencies, Barangay VAWC Desk Officers, and other organizations to relay the data gathered from the Four (4) Focused Group Discussion (FGD), to discuss the processes on how and what to do during an encounter of VAW victims, to focus on referral system of each organization and to obtain more information, encounters, experiences and solutions related to the project.

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