BY PEARL SOCIAS
TO kick off the “16 Days of Activism” campaign against violence against women and children (VAWC), the Zonta Club Metro Iloilo held a motorcade around Iloilo City on Nov. 25, in sync with the observance of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, until Dec. 10, which is Human Rights Day.
Being a group of empowered women in Iloilo empowering fellow women, Zonta Club Metro Iloilo, a member of Zonta International, has carried out programs and projects to help the sector.
The group holds symposiums on teenage pregnancy and online sexual violence in various schools in the city and province of Iloilo, as well as self-defense crash courses at selected high schools.
“One of Zonta’s advocacies, as well as that of pediatricians in Western Visayas, is to stop child abuse. And one form of child abuse we are currently focusing on, which is rampant, is the online sexual exploitation of children,” said Dr. Ma. Theresa M. Hallegado, Pediatrician and Committee Head on Online Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children.
Hallegado recognized the importance of the internet in education and keeping connections, but she emphasized that it is also a venue for people with ill intentions.
“The primary reminder we give children is to be SMART: Stay safe while browsing the internet; do not meet up with people you do not know; avoid accepting suspicious files you receive; is your source reliable?; and tell somebody if someone on the internet is acting suspicious,” she added./PN
