Earlier this week, a police officer by the name of Christian Godfrey Plantinos came under fire for allegedly posting a lewd comment against a female student who joined a protest rally against the burial of former president Ferdinand Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani.

In a Facebook post bashing the protester, an account under the name of police officer Christian Godfrey Plantinos commented "dalawa tayo i-threesome ta sya hahaha."

[The two of us, let’s do a threesome with her.]

The comment, one of many against anti-Marcos protesters, drew the ire of several netizens including lawyer Jose Vener Ibarra who asked the Philippine National Police for information about Plantinos for the purpose of filing a case against him.

'Bakit naging pulis yun?' Bato probes cop who threatened anti-Marcos protester

Plantinos, however, told ABS-CBN News he did not post the comment on Facebook. He said a friend used his phone and posted the comment online without his knowledge.

Cop who 'harassed' protester online: 'It wasn't me'

For Women’s Legal and Human Rights Bureau executive Director Jelen Paclarin, misogynist speech both online and in public especially from government officials is contributing to a culture that encourages violence against women.

"Nakakalungkot pag nakita natin yung mga speech ng mga kalalakihan and even our government representatives and agencies when they try to promote rape and sexist culture," she said.

“It’s sending messages to men and government officials that this is okay, and can be tolerated, na okay lang na bastusin ang kababaihan. That is the problem."

Paclarin said the anonymity provided by social media allows anyone to spew misogynist speech online against women.

She said legal action should be taken against perpetrators who promote violence against women online.

"Online and offline violence against women is the same...Yung iba kinokopya [yung messages] to promote violence," she said.

Executive Director Emmeline Verzosa of the Philippine Commission on Women noted that despite the progress the country has made in advocating for women’s rights, there are still very few women who report cases of abuse due to a “prevailing notion of fear.”

She cited the National Demographic and Health survey which showed that 1 out of 5 women aged 15 to 49 continue to experience physical violence and that six percent of women
continue to experience sexual violence.

Data from the Philippine National Police shows only 41,000 reported cases of violence against women and that very few perpetrators are convicted because the women victims do not push through with the charges because they are economically dependent on their accusers.

Verzosa noted "there is a lot more misogyny or hatred for women" being reported in the news and online.

The PCW on Friday kicked off its “Orange Your Icon” campaign in support of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. With the theme “VAW-free community starts with me”, the 18-day campaign is anchored on the “bright and optimistic” color orange to show abused women that there is still life after being subject to violence.