By Ma. Teresa Montemayor
MANILA – The Council for the Welfare of Children (CWC) has linked the MAKABATA Helpline 1383 with the government’s Unified 911 emergency response system to speed up referrals and assistance for child protection cases.
In a Facebook post Wednesday, the CWC said Executive Director Undersecretary Angelo Tapales and Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remulla signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen coordination between the two hotlines.
Under the agreement, reports received by Unified 911 involving online sexual abuse and exploitation of children, child sexual abuse and exploitation materials, and other online safety concerns will be referred to MAKABATA 1383 for assessment and intervention.
The CWC will assess reports received through MAKABATA 1383 and refer cases involving imminent, serious or life-threatening risks to appropriate authorities, including the Department of Social Welfare and Development, local social welfare offices, Barangay Councils for the Protection of Children and Philippine National Police Women and Children Protection Desks.
For cases requiring immediate emergency assistance, the Emergency 911 National Office will coordinate referrals to police, fire, medical, rescue, social welfare and other government services.
The CWC will train personnel from both hotlines in trauma-informed interviewing and child protection protocols to promote sensitive communication and help prevent re-traumatization.
As of September, Unified 911 had handled 450 calls nationwide involving children, including reports of abuse, sexual harassment, maltreatment, rape, human trafficking and prostitution.
Both agencies will comply with the Data Privacy Act of 2012 and applicable National Privacy Commission rules, limiting access to personal data and call recordings to authorized personnel on a need-to-know basis.
Executive Order 79, issued in 2024, recognizes MAKABATA 1383 as the central reporting system for children in need of special protection.
Executive Order 56, issued in 2018, institutionalizes Emergency 911 as the nationwide emergency response hotline.
