Bohol opens Youth Home

facility for child offenders

TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol (PIA)—Children in conflict with the law (CICL) in Bohol will now have a home where they can have a temporary secure custody and rehabilitative services in a residential facility which Bohol opened to mark its 171st Bohol Day anniversary, July 22.

Opened immediately after its grand launching, Bohol Youth Home (BCH) is a P69 million facility in a half a hectare of gated property of the Provincial Government comprised of two dormitory buildings and administrative offices for residence, a two classroom equipped training center, a covered recreational area and a powerhouse, to provide residential care and rehabilitation services for child offenders in a healthy, safe and secure, explains Provincial Social Welfare and development Officer Carmelita Tecson.

A child offender of at least 12 years old is to be processed by local social welfare officers to determine discernment, and if the ICL is over 15 but under 18, they would be recommended for diversion programs or court proceedings.

Before the opening of the BYH, Bohol Governor Erico Aristotle Aumentado, who with local provincial officials officiated the ribbon cutting and turn-over ceremonies said in the past, many of Bohol CICL had to be referred to distant facilities, thus creating barriers in family support, care management and reintegration.

Now, we are giving life to the structure we see before us, as it is now our collective responsibility to ensure that they remain safe, rehabilitated and recovery-focused to rejoin the mainstream, Gov. Aumentado said in his message.

Citing the milestone which the provincial government pegged, family court judge Samson Ariel Cayetona commented. “the newly opened BYH or Balay Pag-asa, is a manifestation of a promise, that no child will be forgotten because of a lousy past, as every child deserves a future.”

During the opening of the facility which has already licensed social workers to run its programs, fiscal Adolfo Doroy said the first child to be given temporary residency in the facility would be entering within the week, and another is set a week after that.

For BYH, commitment by child offenders are based on the court orders, meaning those below 18 years old with suspended sentences and court orders for their civil commitment, Tecson said.

In the Philippines, when it is illegal to confine CICL with adult offenders, as the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006 protects children from harmful influences and abuse, the BYH has separate dormitories for male and female residents, communal bath and rest rooms, clinics, chapel and prayer rooms, isolation room, kitchen and mess hall and reintegration support facilities.

To be operated by the OPSWD, BYH is backed by an ordinance and to be run by a complete staff of 12 personnel who are trained by the DSWD regional Youth Rehabilitation Center and are equipped to run the facility, Tecson added.

Board member Jiselle Rae Villamor, who before her stint as legislator, worked as trial lawyer in Manila admitted that working for children remains to be one of the most challenging, as it needs a heart to deeply understand the complexities of a child’s world influenced by poverty and violence.

To this, she hails the move to finally open and operate the facility that could provide a local facility that could serve the individual needs of a child.

Calling the opening as a new era in youth development and restorative justice, Board Member Lucille Lagunay said “the facility stresses Bohol’s commitment to uphold the dignity of the Boholano.”

Conceptualized and implemented during the time of former governor Edgar Chatto, the facility was completed during the term of then governor Arthur Yap, but with the pandemic disrupting the processes, the facility remained unused, until Gov Aumentado’s term.

Still needing some fixtures, Aumentado promises to help equip the facility with the necessary support to sustain its operationalization.

After the opening, members of the Juvenile Justice Council as well as supporters signed a memorandum of support for the sustainability of the facility and committed to provide the needed support which CICL may need to reintegrate into the mainstreams of society. (PIABohol)

FINALLY A YOUTH HOME. On the occasion of the 171st Bohol Day, local officials led by Gov Erico Aristotle Aumentado opened the P 69M Bohol Youth Home as a residential facility for child offenders needing child care including counselling, rehabilitation, and reintegration into society. To be run by the Provincial Government, a staff of 12 fully equipped personnel and licensed social workers are to operate the facility. (PIABohol)