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Orientation on the Standard Operating Procedures for SEA

Date | Time | Venue

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    • The 2024 Global PSEA Survey Results - Philippines showed

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      • 95.44% said their organizations provide clear information on where and how to report SEA incidents.

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      • 98.31% know their obligation to report SEA incidents involving their colleagues of their entities; 96.03% involving colleagues from other UN entities; and 95.96% involving their implementing partners, suppliers, and vendors.

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      • 96.11% are aware of how and where to report SEA incidents.

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      • 90.08% believe they can report SEA incidents without fear of retaliation.

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      • Only 4.99% or 68 respondents (54% women) know of SEA instances involving UN/NGO personnel/partners/vendors/ suppliers committing transactional sex. Only 49 were reported.

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THE INTER-AGENCY SEA-REFERRAL PROCEDURES (2018-2023)

Established by the Philippine Humanitarian Country Team (HCT) through the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) 2018

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1

February-Mar 2024

  • PSEA Task Team was formed to lead the process of revising
        • IOM, UNRCO, UNHCR, WFP, Plan International Pilipinas and CARE

2

April-May 2024

  • Special coordination meetings held with key government agencies
  • Several consultations and workshops conducted

3

June-November 2024

  • Widely circulated to members for final review
  • Endorsed by UNCT and HCT

Steps in the SOP Development

Standard Operating Procedures

These are the agreed and formalized way of working together on a collective commitment to SEA complaint and assistance referral, as endorsed by the senior leadership in-country

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

  1. Introduction
  2. Definition of Terms
  3. Roles and Responsibilities
  4. Minimum Standards and Guiding Principles Underlying SEA Referrals
  5. Inter-Agency SEA Complaint and Assistance Referrals
  6. Investigations
  7. Signatory Page
  8. Annexes

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Standard Operating

Procedures (SOPs) for SEA

Multiple SEA

Reporting Channels

Entity’s Investigation Procedures

Assistance to Victims/Survivors with Consent

Prompt

Referral of

Complaints

Prompt

Referral for

Assistance

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Standard Operating

Procedures (SOPs) for SEA

Outline the roles of stakeholders and the standards and principles on complaint handling and information management of SEA allegations

Does not replace or override internal policies, rules, or procedures of member organizations

Only applies when an entity has received a SEA complaint and requires referral to another entity

Prompt referral of SEA complaint to the concerned entity for appropriate support to victim/survivor, follow-up, and investigation

Not about how to receive a complaint

Not about how to set up a complaint and feedback mechanism

Not about information sharing protocol for sharing personally identifiable information

Does not cover a standardized SEA reporting form

Not about data protection standards and principles

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Key Features of the SOPs

UN Country Team (UNCT) and Humanitarian Country Team (HCT)

Heads of Entities/Agencies/Organizations

Inter-Agency PSEA Coordinator

Resident/Humanitarian Coordinator

Entity PSEA Focal Points

GBV/CP Coordinators/Specialists

Accountability to Affected Populations WG

KEY ACTORS WITH ROLES

STANDARDS AND PRINCIPLES

HRBA and Victim-Centered Approach

IASC 6 Core Principles

Mandatory Reporting

Complaints and Feedback Mechanisms

Whistleblower Protection

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Do Not Bribe

for Sex

ZERO TOLERANCE POLICY

Mandatory

Reporting

No Sexual Relationship

With Beneficiaries

No Second

Chances

Prevent Sexual

Exploitation and Abuse

No Sexual Activity

with Children

(below 18 years old)

UN Secretary-General’s Bulletin (ST/SGB/2003/13)

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G

B

V

/

C

P

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L

A

W

S

  • RA 7610 – Special Protection of Children Against Child Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act

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  • RA 7877 – Anti-Sexual Harassment Act of 1995 (Committee on Decorum and Investigation, CODI)

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  • RA 8353 & 11648 – Anti-Rape Law (1997) & Stronger Protection Against Rape and SEA (2021)

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  • RA 9208, 10364 & 11862 – Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003 and Amendment (2012)

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  • RA 11596 – An Act Prohibiting the Practice of Child Marriage

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  • RA 11188 – Special Protection of Children in Situations of Armed Conflict Act

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  • RA 9710 – Magna Carta of Women

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  • RA 10821– Children’s Emergency Relief and Protection Act

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  • RA 11313 – Safe Spaces Act

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  • RA 11930 – Anti-Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation of Children (OSAEC) and Anti-Child Sexual Abuse or Exploitation Materials (CSAEM) Act

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International Instruments Signed by the Philippine Government:

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  • Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)

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  • Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

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  • Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)

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  • Violence and Harassment Convention (C190)

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G

B

V

/

C

P

​

L

A

W

S

  • RA 6713 – Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees

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  • 2017 Rules on Administrative Cases in the Civil Service (2017 RACCS)

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  • Act 3815 – Revised Penal Code

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  • BAA 62 – Rights of Internally Displaced Persons of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region Act of 2024

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To be protected

To be treated with respect

To receive assistance and support

To privacy and confidentiality

To decide how involved to be

Victim-Centered Approach

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Victim-Centered Approach

To get information

To be heard

To justice and accountability

To a remedy

To complain

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REFERRAL OF COMPLAINTS

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  • All entities should acknowledge the receipt of the SEA report within 24 hours. The acknowledgment should be given to the person who reported it.

  • If the entity who receives the report is not the concerned entity, the receiving entity should fill out the referral form and refer the case to the concerned entity within 48 hours unless more time is required to gather information.

REFERRAL FOR ASSISTANCE

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  • Begins as soon as information indicating that an individual may be a victim/survivor of SEA is received in any way or form; based on victim-survivor’s informed consent.
  • Referral for survivor assistance must be provided, if and when possible, within 72 hours of receipt of the report if the survivor consents to receive the services.
  • Does not require formal case filing, investigation, or result of an investigation.
  • Provision of services must be in line with a victim/survivor-centered approach
  • Facilitate referrals using the GBV/CP Referral pathways

Standard Operating

Procedures (SOPs) for SEA

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SCENARIO 1:

,

Alleged perpetrator is affiliated with the same entity as complaint recipient

If the alleged perpetrator works in or is affiliated with the same entity as the complaint recipient, the INTERNAL PROCEDURES OF THE ENTITY should be followed in accordance with the survivor-centered approach. Receipt of complaint should be acknowledged within 24 hours.

“Working for” or “affiliated with” includes situations where the alleged perpetrator is –

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    • A member of the affected community with a contractual link with the entity (e.g. community volunteer, incentive worker, community mobilizer, etc.)
    • A personnel of the implementing partner, procurement partner, or government partner of the entity

ENTITY A

receives SEA report

Alleged perpetrator works or is affiliated with the same entity - ENTITY A

ENTITY A

follows internal procedures

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SCENARIO 2:

Alleged perpetrator is affiliated with a different entity that is a member of the PSEA Network

The PSEA FP/trained staff should complete the referral form and refer to the SEA complaint-handling body or PSEA FP of the entity (Entity B) within 48 hours.

​

​

If there is a conflict of interest or the complaint handling is compromised, refer the complaint to the IA PSEA Coordinator and/or the RC/HC who in turn will perform appropriate action, based on the informed consent of the victim/survivor.

ENTITY A

receives SEA report

Alleged perpetrator works or is affiliated with ENTITY B who is a member of the PSEA Network

PSEA FP of ENTITY A completes the referral form and refers to PSEA FP of ENTITY B

ENTITY B follows internal procedures

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SCENARIO 3:

Alleged perpetrator is affiliated with an entity that is NOT a member of the PSEA Network

Referral of complaint should be acknowledged within 48 hours, based on informed consent of the victim/survivor.

ENTITY A

receives SEA report

Alleged perpetrator works or is affiliated with ENTITY B who is not a member of the PSEA Network

ENTITY A PSEA FP completes the referral form and refers to the PSEA Coordinator or RC/HC

ENTITY B follows internal procedures

The RC/HC or the PSEA Coordinator (if delegated) share the complaint with the Country Director or equivalent of ENTITY B

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SCENARIO 4:

Alleged perpetrator is affiliated with a host government entity

ENTITY A

receives SEA report

Alleged perpetrator works for or is affiliated with a host GOVERNMENT

ENTITY A PSEA FP completes the referral form and refers to the PSEA FP/trained staff of the entity partnering with the government

ENTITY PARTNERING WITH GOVERNMENT ensures accountability and victim/survivor assistance

The RC/HC will share the complaint officially with the relevant GOVERNMENT for investigation and action within 48 hours and based on the consent of the victims/survivors

ENTITY PARTNERING WITH THE GOVERNMENT will share the complaint with RC/HC (or with the PSEA Coordinator if delegated)

Concerned GOVERNMENT

follows its internal procedures

The entity partnering with the government can assess the situation to identify actions to be taken to stop misconduct and provide protection and assistance to victims/survivors.

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SCENARIO 5:

Alleged perpetrator’s entity is unknown or unclear

Basic inquiry includes obtaining basic information about the incident such as what happened, who is the alleged perpetrator, when and where it happened, and who else knows about the incident.

ENTITY A

receives SEA report

Alleged perpetrator’s entity is unknown or unclear

ENTITY A PSEA FP completes the referral form and refers to the PSEA Coordinator

Once identified, the PSEA Coordinator shares the referral form with the concerned entity

The PSEA Coordinator conducts a basic inquiry (not investigation) to identify the concerned entity

If still not identified, the PSEA Coordinator refers the complaint to the RC/HC

Concerned ENTITY

follows its internal procedures

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SCENARIO 6:

Victim/

survivor’s identity is unknown, or complaint is anonymous

S1: The alleged perpetrator is affiliated with the same entity as the complaint recipient

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S2: The alleged perpetrator is affiliated with a different entity that is a member of the PSEA Network

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S3: The alleged perpetrator is affiliated with an entity that is NOT a member of the PSEA Network

ENTITY A

receives SEA report

The victim/survivor’s identity is unknown, but the alleged perpetrator and entity are known

ENTITY A follows procedures for Scenarios 1, 2, or 3

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SCENARIO 7:

Victim/survivor, alleged perpetrator, and entity are all unknown

  • To be treated as INCONCLUSIVE INFORMATION.

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  • However, such reports can be an opportunity to address SEA risk mitigation and safer programming.

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SCENARIO 8:

Alleged perpetrator is a member of the affected community without a contractual link with an entity/

organization

  • If the complaint involves a community member who does not have a contract with the entity but is involved in, or is facilitating the delivery of aid (e.g. community leader or community volunteer without a contract), follow procedures in Scenarios 1-3.
  • If the complainant involves a community member who neither has a contract with an entity nor involved in aid delivery, the incident will be dealt with as a GBV case.
  • In these instances, the PSEA FP/trained staff should still offer referral for assistance services and may inform the IA PSEA Coordinator of the anonymized GBV incident, to bring to the GBV Sub Cluster Coordinator for their awareness of potential GBV risks and offer access to GBV services as needed.

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SCENARIO 9:

It is unclear whether the complaint alleges SEA

  • In cases where it is unclear whether a complaint alleges SEA, the PSEA Coordinator may provide support to the complaint recipient. The complaint should be referred for determination by the concerned entity’s investigation unit.
  • PSEA stakeholders still have a vested interest in timely and efficient referral for the survivor to access support services, as needed.
  • In general, any complaint that does not involve SEA will be transferred directly to the concerned entity or to the cluster/sector coordinating that response so that the complaint can be forwarded to the relevant entity.

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RESPONSE BY THE CONCERNED ENTITY

  • Upon receipt of the referral, the concerned entity should provide any additional assistance and support necessary to link the victim/survivor with the appropriate service providers.
  • Within two business days, send a confirmation to the referring personnel that the SEA complaint was received and that no further action is required by the referring personnel.
  • The Technical Note on the Implementation of the UN Protocol on the Provision of Assistance to Victims of SEA can be used as a reference.

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SAFE CHANNELS TO REPORT SEA

Should be safe, confidential, transparent, child-sensitive, and gender-sensitive, and accessible and should have multiple entry points

TYPES OF CHANNELS

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    • Face To Face
      • Through trained PSEA FPs, Gender/Protection Officers
      • Through other staff of volunteers in contact with communities who have been trained on PSEA
      • Through GBV and CP service providers

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    • Remote Interaction
      • Phone hotlines, digital tools like email address established for complaints
      • Community feedback mechanisms

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Supporting Documents

The government directory of service providers can be seen in the following websites:

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  • National Government Hotlines:
    • Bantay Bata Helpline 163
    • DSWD – (632) 8-931-8101 to 07, 0919-9116200, 0917-110-5686, 0917-827-2543
    • CWC Makabata Hotline – 1383
    • PNP-WCPC - 0919-777-7377
    • PNP Hotline – 117
    • DepEd CPU - 0995-921-8461
    • DOJ Actionline Against Human Trafficking – 1343 for Metro Manila and (+632) 1343 for outside Metro Manila
    • NBI VAWC Desk – 02-8523-8231 to 38, 02 8525-6028
    • CHR Public Assistance – 0936-0680982, 0920-506-1194
    • Provincial, City, or Regional Prosecutor
    • Local Barangay Council for the Protection of Children
    • Citizens’ Complaint Action Center – 8888
    • CSC’s Contact Center ng Bayan (CCB) – 0908-881-6565 and email address email@contactcenterngbayan.gov.ph

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REFERRAL PATHWAY

Multi-Disciplinary Team Approach

VICTIM/

SURVIVOR/

COMMUNITY

MEDICAL/

HEALTH

SAFETY AND SECURITY

LEGAL AND

JUSTICE

PSYCHOSOCIAL

INCLUDING SOCIAL

RE-INTEGRATION AND LIVELIHOOD INITIATIVES

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Questions?

Reflections?

Sharing?

O EXCUSE

Z

ERO TOLERANCE POLICY