Multisectoral forum addresses worsening school-based violence in the Philippines
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The University of Asia and the Pacific, together with online lending platform JuanHand, held a program titled “Addressing School-Based Violence: A Multisectoral Forum on Preventing Nihilistic Violent Extremism,” on Nov. 6 in Pasig City.
The forum addressed school-based violence and manifestations of NVE in the Philippines and the measures taken to counter these.
The program drew key government officials, including Interior and Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remulla and Education Secretary Sonny Angara.
“The threat of the internet and all its blessings and all its virtues and all its expansiveness in this world threatens us too as a family. And maybe there is one thing that can stop it. It is us,” Remulla said.
Meanwhile, Angara said DepEd is strengthening its safety and security protocols. Angara shared that he and Remulla signed a Memorandum of Agreement that allows barangay officials to participate in the ingress and egress of students to strengthen campus security.
Angara also mentioned that DepEd has expanded its Kaagapay Program. Beyond tracking children’s academic performance, the program now helps parents safeguard their children in online spaces.
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Meanwhile, Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro also graced the event.
In addition to government officials, representatives from several educational institutions, law enforcement units, and civil society organizations also attended the forum.
Understanding NVE
Providing important context regarding NVE was Principal Security Architect and Dark Web & Intelligence Strategist Brian Borysewich.
He explained the workings behind NVE in the Philippines, particularly how networks of predators befriend children into performing dangerous acts. He highlighted that beyond ideology, these groomers target vulnerable children or minors, such as those with family or school problems.
Examples of vulnerable or reachable children are those who are:
- Isolated, bullied, or grieving
- Living with depression, suicidal thoughts, self-harm, or disordered eating
- Part of the LGBTQ+ community or other minority groups
- Heavy users of gore and violent game content
Recent cases in the Philippines involving NVE include those in Tacloban, Zamboanga, and Banga.
Borysewich also discussed how violent content in games and online spaces acts as a contributing factor in NVE-influenced crimes. He grouped these into four roles:
- Venue - Groomers contact children in game chats.
- Rehearsal - Sandbox games become a venue to stage attacks first (e.g. Tacloban shooters using the game Gorebox as a simulation ground).
- Desensitization - Gore sites and mass-shooter fandoms normalize harm.
- Reward - Besides being free from consequences, NVE spaces reward violence with status.
Borysewich said these contexts imply that beyond the game titles, there’s a need to regulate chat boxes, the livestream, and the feed.
Children must be taught the value of consequences. They must learn that “harm has a cost” before groomers and networks teach them that it “has a reward.”
Multisectoral discussions
The forum featured two moderated panel discussions to delve deeper and address the worsening cases of school-based violence in the Philippines.
The first panel, titled “Online Threats, Offline Consequences: Investigating and Prosecuting School-Based Violence,” featured experts in law and crime. Panel members included Justice Undersecretary Ian Norman Dato; Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center representative Col. Alan Arao-arao; Philippine National Police Anti-Cybercrime Group representative Police Captain Vince Joshua Garcia; Digital Pinoys National Campaigner Ronald Gustilo; and NBI representative Rosalie Laguardia.
The panel covered inter-agency actions and how to address growing threats on digital platforms that can spill into dangerous real-life situations. Panelists underscored current laws and projects that help address school-based violence.
The second panel titled “Recognizing the Signs: Early Intervention Against School-Based Violence” featured panelists Education Director Atty. Razzel Anne Requesto, Child Rights Coalition Asia Senior Program Officer Janice Tapil, Social Welfare and Development Director Elvis Quitalig, and content creator and parenting mentor Mariel Kliatchko.
The discussion centered on preventing school-based violence. It focused on recognizing behavioral, social, and emotional cues that may need intervention; the importance of support systems and building bonds between parent/guardian and child; multisectoral coordination among schools, government agencies, social workers, parents, and child protection organizations; and the importance of inclusive, safe spaces.
Bilyonaryo News Channel host and legal commentator Atty. Karen Jimeno provided a brief synthesis to wrap up the discussions, while JuanHand CEO Francisco Roberto “Coco” Mauricio ended the program with his closing remarks.
“The expectation was: let’s just start it and see where it leads—get everyone together, have candid, straightforward, in-depth, robust discussions, learn from each other, and then see what else should be done next,” Mauricio said.
Beyond its mandate as a lending company, JuanHand believes the private sector plays a meaningful role in supporting causes that drive positive social impact. The forum gives the company a platform for meaningful discussions among relevant institutions and stakeholders to exchange ideas, discuss approaches, and foster collaboration.
“This won't be the last,” Mauricio affirmed.
The Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office provided medical equipment to the Municipality of Lal-lo, Cagayan on Sept. 14, during a ceremonial turnover held at the PCSO Main Office in Mandaluyong City.
PCSO General Manager Melquiades A. Robles led the ceremonial turnover of equipment, which included nebulizers, wheelchairs, blood pressure monitors, a thermal scanner, a pulse oximeter, a weighing scale, and an oxygen tank with regulator. Lal-lo Mayor Oliver Pascual formally received the items.
Pascual expressed his gratitude to the PCSO, emphasizing that the donated items are expected to support the municipality in providing basic healthcare services and responding to the medical needs of residents.
The provision of medical devices is part of the PCSO Corporate Social Responsibility Program, which seeks to assist local government units in addressing the healthcare needs of their constituents.
PCSO continues to fulfill its mandate of helping Filipinos through its various charity and CSR programs, made possible by proceeds from its gaming products. Through these efforts, the agency remains committed to improving the well-being of communities across the country.
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Editor's note: BrandedUp is designed to provide you with insightful, inspiring, and educational content created by The Philippine STAR in collaboration with brands like JuanHand.
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