Access to justice for the poor women and children: A study on the process of institutional change in Oriental Mindoro

• Main Author: Carada, Florisa Norina L.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2014
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_masteral/4678
• Institution: De La Salle University

Poor women and children in Oriental Mindoro experienced poor access to justice. In 2006-2008, with financial support from the European Union, an Access to Justice for the Poor Project was implemented in order to improve access to justice for the poor. This study tries to understand the dynamics of institutional change in analyzing the effects of the Project. How and why did institutional change occur in providing improved access to justice for the poor women and children. As argued the project made justice sector institutions more sensitive to the need for access to justice by the poor women and children. Communities became empowered which enabled them to be more active in bringing their problems to the justice sector institutions. The study selected three sites in Oriental Mindoro. San Teodoro and Bansud are the projects sites and Mansalay, a non-project site, served as the control case. Findings showed that all the areas experienced improved access to justice by the poor women and children brought about by institutional change. Institutional change was brought about by a project design that incorporates institutional actors undertaking institutional work. Likewise, the empowerment of the community brought about by the participatory strategies completed the elements of interaction needed to produce the desired change. Sensitized justice sector institutions configures better coordination which stimulates clearer responses manifested in the enhanced performance of agency actors. Increased awareness empowers individual accessors of justice and encourages greater interaction with the justice sector institutions. Spill-over effects brings about sustainability which other areas like Mansalay benefited from.!