Amid the rising incidence of child pornography in the Philippines, the Inter-Agency Council Against Child Pornography (IACACP), chaired by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and vice-chaired by the Department of Justice (DOJ), launched Safer Internet Day for Children PH yesterday at the DSWD Central Office, Batasan Hills, Quezon City.

Attended by IACACP members and child advocates, the event reinforced the significance of Proclamation No. 417 Declaring the Second Tuesday of February every year as ‘Safer Internet Day for Children Philippines’, signed by President Rodrigo R. Duterte on February 5, 2018.

In her message, Assistant Secretary for Special Women’s and Children’s Concerns and Alternate Chair of IACACP, Michelle R. Ortega-Pimentel said that the Philippines is now the number one target of child cyber pornographers indicating the seriousness of the situation.

“Hence, the issuance of Proclamation No. 417 provides the much needed impetus in strengthening the government’s campaign against child pornography. Furthermore, this clearly shows the President’s commitment in protecting the Filipino children against all forms of abuse and cruelty,” she added.

The approval of the proclamation is provided for in the 1987 Constitution which says that the government shall promote and protect the physical, moral, spiritual, intellectual, and social well-being of the youth.

DSWD Officer-In-Charge Emmanuel S. Leyco lauded the issuance of Presidential Proclamation No. 417 stating, “We welcome this development because it further shows the seriousness of the government’s campaign to help protect children from abuse and child pornography. From this year henceforward, the DSWD and its units focused on the protection of children’s welfare will mark Safer Internet Day with activities to make the public more aware against the dangers of child pornography and the necessity to protect children from the evils that lurk in the internet.”

Meanwhile, Department of Information, Communication and Technology (DICT)  Assistant Secretary Carlos Caliwara emphasized that “Ever day should be considered as Safer Internet Day, and not just focus on one day” because of the gravity of the issue.

Available data from various government agencies indicate the alarming increase in the incidence of child cyber pornography. Data from the DOJ-Office of Cyber Crime (OOCC)  show that  37, 715 cyber tips were received in 2016. A total of 26,000 reports  from The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) was received by the DOJ-OOCC from  January to April, 2017.

On the other hand, 2013-2016 data from the Philippine National Police (PNP) listed a total of 731 cases with 32 of these directly violating Republic Act 9775 or the Anti Child Pornography Act.

In 2016, the International Justice Mission (IJM), a member non-government organization of IACACP, assisted law enforcers from the National Bureau of Investigation and PNP in the rescue of 57 victims of Online Sexual Abuse and Exploitation (OSAEC), 55 of whom were confirmed minors. Thirty perpetrators were arrested and charged with violations of RA 10175, RA 9775 and RA 9208 as amended by RA 10364 with four convictions of OSAEC cases.

Meanwhile, DSWD data indicate a total of 24 victim-survivors (community based) and 61 victim-survivors (residential care facilities) of child pornography in all its field offices.  They are being assisted through the various programs and services of the Department including legal and livelihood. ###