An alarming number of child abuse and rape cases have taken place in Tacloban since super typhoon Yolanda spread chaos and destruction two years ago.
Most of the victims of sexual abuse are under 10 years old and in many cases, a relative is the perpetrator of the assault.
As of this writing, 33 cases have been reported in 2014 and 31 cases have been reported in January to September 2015.
But many other cases go unreported according to local police due to fear of shame since the crime usually involves a family member.
A contributing factor may be due to the lack of proper housing. Unsafe living arrangements put women and young children in danger of abuse.
One case was that of a 16-year-old girl whose alias is “Carla” who was abused repeatedly by her policeman uncle with whom her mother left her.
She is now safe with a social welfare officer and her attacker has since been dismissed from the police force. He is currently on the run from authorities.
According to News 5, the Tacloban Social Welfare and Development office are helping the victims like “Carla” to file cases and get the pyscho-social help they need to recover from the trauma of the horrific violence and abuse.
Read: 200 families receive typhoon-resilient homes 2 years after Supertyphoon Yolanda
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