00:00One of the rights of children is to be given the right to listen and to love their parents.
00:09But there are some children who have only just realized this right.
00:15I met Nabel and Peter, they don't have a real name.
00:19They are children who grew up far away from their parents.
00:24Their parents are PDL or Persons Deprived of Liberty.
00:31Bell was only 5 years old when she was brought to this shelter.
00:37She was brought here after her mother was imprisoned under the name of Joanne.
00:43How many years have you been here in POC?
00:465 years.
00:475 years. Do you still remember the day you were brought here?
00:54After my birthday, I was brought here.
00:58It was painful because before...
01:10That's why I'm afraid that my mother will disappear.
01:14Because?
01:15I'm afraid that my mother and my brother will take care of me.
01:27POCCH or Philippine Outreach Center Children's Home is an accredited NGO of DSWD.
01:35They take care of children who were abandoned or who were not taken care of by their parents.
01:41Bell has been in this shelter for 6 years.
01:46She has been 6 years away from her mother in PIC.
01:51On the one hand, Bell is lucky because she was able to meet and be with her mother before she was imprisoned.
02:01There are children who were separated from their parents after they were imprisoned.
02:092 hours. This is how short the time that Peter spent with his mother.
02:17When you were born in the prison, did you stay there until you grew up?
02:24No.
02:25Oh, no. What happened?
02:282 hours. I was only 2 hours old in the prison and I was brought here.
02:34Because while the POC was ministering, I was seen and brought here.
02:41So when you grew up and learned how to speak, you were not with your mother?
02:47No.
02:49It was a case of his mother being pregnant when she went into jail.
02:54And I think his father was also in prison at the same time.
02:58He did have older siblings, but they were not in a position to help. There was nobody.
03:06Peter is now 15 years old.
03:10When he grew up, he had almost no memory of his mother.
03:15Peter's mother was imprisoned for 15 years for the case of drugs that we will hide under the name Esther.
03:22I have no relatives here. I also don't want my siblings to know about this.
03:29They thought that I was already dead. They thought that I was already dead.
03:34Esther thought that she would never see her child again.
03:39But fortunately, she was visited by social workers along with Peter.
03:45In 2018, her prayers were heard.
03:50Esther is now free.
03:52She brought back her child, but she was not allowed to take Peter as soon as his life outside was not settled.
04:01This year, Esther's Parental Capability Assessment Report was approved.
04:08She can be with Peter anytime.
04:13I am ready. I will do my best. I can do anything.
04:19I will follow my life.
04:20I will do my best. I can do anything.
04:39I am free. I will just think that my children are beside me. I will wake up and my children are beside me.
04:45We are now a family again. Even if they don't have a father, even if it's just the two of us,
04:51at least I have a family that I can call my own when I am free.
04:57Peter and Belle are the only two children who were forced to leave their mother because of the imprisonment of their parents.
05:07According to the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology,
05:10more than 1,000 pregnant women were imprisoned in their facilities.
05:15According to the Correctional Institution for Women,
05:19currently, there are two pregnant women and four children who are being cared for in their mother's ward.
05:45For more information, visit www.fema.gov
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