The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) enjoin the nation to be one in combating child abuse and exploitation in the national observance of Presidential Proclamation No. 731, series of 1996 that declares the 2nd week of February of every year as “National Awareness Week for the Prevention of Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation” or also known as “Child Sexual Abuse Awareness Week.”
This year’s observance comes at the wake of a pandemic that has led to the unprecedented economic crisis of the worst Philippine post-war Gross Domestic Product slump. Worsening socio-economic factors, which undoubtedly have been affected by the pandemic, has led to an alarming increase of child abuse and sexual exploitation. It is alarming that, in contrast to the economic slump the Philippine is currently experiencing, there has been an observable doubling of suspicious transactions involving child pornography. A public bulletin released by the Philippines’s Anti-Money Laundering Council revealed the volume of suspicious transaction reports reached 27,217 from January to June 2020 or more than 2.5 times the 10,627 reported for the entire 2019. This report corroborates the findings of the Department of Justice which has noted a 264% increase of online sexual exploitation of children (OSEC) as the country continues to battle the Covid-19 pandemic.
Celebrating this year’s Child Sexual Abuse Awareness Week means that all efforts must be exerted by the government to protect all minors from all forms of abuse. This includes the continued provision of psychosocial services, health, and financial aid to protect young individuals from being lured into online exploitation as means to provide for themselves and their families. The move of the current administration to sanction erring internet service providers for their failure to stop online child pornography is a welcome initiative towards our common endeavor in the fight against OSEC.
CHR reiterates its support for the passage of Senate Bill 735 or the Human Trafficking Preventive Education Program Act by Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, which aims to orient Filipino children on their rights and vital protection measures against OSEC.
Child exploitation reflects a failure to protect the most vulnerable. The marginalised sector, now more than ever, needs the government’s utmost protection in unprecedented times like this.
On this day, as we commemorate National Awareness Week for the Prevention of Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation, let us all step-up our efforts to respond, protect and prevent the continuing cases of child abuse. ###