22/08/2026
๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ฏ๐๐ง ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฒ ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ ๐๐จ๐ข๐๐: ๐๐๐ง๐ณ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ซ๐๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ง๐ฌ ๐๐ญ๐ฌ ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ข๐ญ๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ๐ก ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ก๐ข๐ฅ๐ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ญ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง
There are moments when a young person stays silentโnot because there is nothing to say, but because they are unsure if someone will listen.
Sometimes, it is a child who chooses not to tell anyone about what happened. Sometimes, it is a student who carries a problem quietly into the classroom. Sometimes, it is a young person who needs help but does not know where to find it.
And sometimes, what they need most is simpleโa safe place.
For the youth of Tanza, Cavite, the idea of safety is now being given a stronger voice through Project Safe Haven, a school and community-based initiative focused on child protection, youth welfare, mental health awareness, positive youth development, and the creation of safe spaces.
๐ฆ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ: ๐๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐ผ๐บ๐ฒ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ผ ๐ฆ๐๐ฒ๐ฝ ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฑ
Standing up does not always mean doing something grand.
Sometimes, it means noticing when someone is struggling. It means choosing to ask, โOkay ka lang?โ when everyone else keeps walking. It means refusing to stay silent when something is wrong.
This is at the heart of Project Safe Haven.
Through LYDC Resolution No. 002-S-2026, the Local Youth Development Council formally expressed its support for and adopted Project Safe Haven as one of Tanza's priority youth development and child protection initiatives.
Approved on June 25, 2026, the resolution recognizes that protecting children and young people is not the responsibility of one person, office, or organization alone.
It requires people to stand together.
The Local Youth Development Council, the municipal government, social welfare offices, educational institutions, youth organizations, civil society groups, and other stakeholders are called to work together in promoting and implementing the program.
Because when one person stands, they make a statement.
But when a community stands together, they create protection.
๐ฆ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ธ: ๐๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐ถ๐น๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐ต๐ผ๐๐น๐ฑ ๐ก๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ข๐ป๐น๐ ๐๐ต๐ผ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฒ
For a young person, speaking up can be difficult.
Fear, embarrassment, uncertainty, or the thought of not being believed can make silence feel safer than telling the truth.
This is why creating safe spaces matters.
Project Safe Haven seeks to promote environments where children and youth can talk about their experiences, concerns, and struggles without feeling that their voices do not matter.
Its focus on mental health awareness and youth welfare recognizes that protection is not only about keeping young people away from physical harm. It is also about caring for what they carry inside.
To speak is to say, โThis happened.โ
To speak is to say, โI need help.โ
To speak is to say, โSomething is wrong.โ
And most importantly, speaking should come with the assurance that someone will listen.
The resolution itself reflects the importance of youth participation. Guided by the principles of the 1987 Philippine Constitution and Republic Act No. 10742, the LYDC recognizes young people not merely as beneficiaries of programs but as participants in shaping the initiatives created for them.
Their voices are not an addition to the conversation.
They are part of the conversation.
๐ฆ๐ต๐ถ๐ฒ๐น๐ฑ: ๐๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐๐ฒ ๐ฃ๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ง๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ ๐ฎ ๐๐ผ๐บ๐บ๐๐ป๐ถ๐๐
A shield is strongest when more than one person holds it.
That is the kind of protection Project Safe Haven aims to build.
Through collaboration with the Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office, Municipal Youth Development Office, Local Council for the Protection of Children, schools, youth organizations, civil society organizations, and other stakeholders, the initiative seeks to create a network of people ready to protect and support the younger generation.
It is a reminder that child protection does not end with a policy.
It begins when that policy reaches the classroom.
It continues when a youth leader listens.
It becomes real when a community responds.
And it grows stronger when young people themselves are empowered to protect one another.
๐ ๐๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ป ๐๐๐ถ๐น๐ ๐ฏ๐ ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ๐
The approval of LYDC Resolution No. 002-S-2026 may appear to be another official document, another resolution passed during a meeting.
But behind every resolution is a reason.
Behind every program are people who hope it will make a difference.
And behind Project Safe Haven are young people who deserve to grow in a community where their safety is taken seriously.
The resolution formally adopts the project, but its success will ultimately be measured beyond the pages of the documentโthrough the conversations it starts, the people it reaches, the youth it empowers, and the lives it helps protect.
Because a safe haven is not simply a building.
It is a feeling.
It is knowing that when you speak, someone will listen.
It is knowing that when you are vulnerable, someone will stand beside you.
It is knowing that when you need protection, someone will hold the shield.
Stand for those who need someone beside them.
Speak when silence allows harm to continue.
Shield those who deserve to feel safe.
In Tanza, Project Safe Haven is more than a youth development initiative. It is an invitation for an entire community to become a safer place for its young people.
Because every child deserves a safe haven.
And every young voice deserves to be heard.
Words of Joelyn Bonita, Feature Editor
