Limiting number of female cops not meant to discriminate 鈥� Albayalde
Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Oscar Albayalde on Thursday said the proposal to keep the threshold for female recruits to 10 percent of the police force is not meant to discriminate women.
Albayalde was reacting to the statement of the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) that limiting the number female cops in the police force goes against the provisions of the Magna Carta of Women (MCW), which was enacted in 2009.
“That’s not meant to discriminate anybody. Wala pong discrimination dito (There is no discrimination here). They all go the same process whether you’re a male or female,” Albayalde told reporters in a forum in Malacañang.
In a statement, CHR Spokesperson Jacqueline Ann De Guia said that Albayalde’s proposal violates the MCW, citing Section 9(a) which states that “within the next five (5) years, there shall be an incremental increase in the recruitment and training of women in the police force, forensics and medico-legal, legal services, and social work services availed of by women who are victims of gender-related offenses until fifty percent (50%) of the personnel thereof shall be women.”
CHR also noted that justifying such idea on women’s pregnancy and extended maternity leaves “goes against the spirit and intent of the MCW in prohibiting all forms of discrimination against women and of the maternity leave law in recognizing women’s gender specific needs.”
Albayalde, however, insisted that the law mandated the reservation of only 10 percent of its annual recruitment to women.
“The law provides na mayroon dapat kaming 10 percent na saming strength at saka sa recruitment, sa ngayon lumalampas pa nga kami doon sa 10 percent e,” the top police official said.
(The law provides that we allot 10 percent of the force to female recruits. As of now, we have more than 10 percent.)
“I don’t know kung totoo iyan no, we have to check on the Magna Carta. Wala yata akong nabasa ganun na ganun (I don’t know if that is true. We need to check the Magna Carta. I don’t remember reading that provision),” he added. /ee
READ: CHR: Limiting PNP women recruits to 10% has no basis
