Task force vs. child trafficking formed

CEBU, Philippines — Cebu City has officially heightened its combat against online sexual exploitation of children with the creation of the Task Force on the Inter-Agency Council against Trafficking and Online Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children (OSAEC).

Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia signed the executive order titled “An Order Creating an Inter-agency Council Against Trafficking, Online Sexual Abuse, and Exploitation of Children (OSAEC) and Anti-Child Sexual Abuse or Exploitation Materials (CSAEM)” in the presence of the press yesterday.

He said the creation of the task force is vital, following reports of several sexual abuse cases, especially the exploitation of children, not only in Cebu but also in other areas of the country.

Garcia said the government is stepping up its measures against these cases. However, he mentioned there were no significant numbers of cases reported to his office.

“Managang lang g’yud ta ani. So, when the council is now formed, they can give us unsa ilang na come up nga recommendations,” said Garcia.

On reports that babies were being targeted for sale, Garcia admitted that such information reached his office but declined to comment further as an investigation is ongoing. But he said these cases should not prosper in Cebu City.

Should reports be proven true, Garcia said the prosecution of those caught is ensured.

The EO is anchored in the mandate under Republic Act No. 11930, also known as the OSAEC and CSAEM Act, which provides special protection to children from all forms of sexual violence, abuse, and exploitation, especially those committed with the use of information and communications technology.

It was derived from the mandate that local governments should pass ordinances to cascade these efforts locally. In Cebu City, the ordinance was recently passed by the City Council, authored by Councilor James Anthony Cuenco.

In the order signed by Garcia, the task force shall be headed by a chairperson, represented by the mayor or any authorized representative. The members will include a vice chairperson from the council’s Committee on Women and Family Affairs, the City Social Welfare and Development Office, the council’s Committee on Social Services, City Health Office, City Legal Office, City Prosecutor, Department of the Interior and Local Government, and the Association of Barangay Councils, among others.

The task force is mandated to cooperate with and provide assistance to concerned law enforcement agencies to immediately investigate and counter-OSAEC and CSAEM intelligence gathering. They will also be responsible for developing and implementing local programs and interventions on anti-OSAEC and CSAEM, as well as implementing sustained, gender-responsive, and effective communication strategies.

The task force is also mandated to create a monitoring and data collection system or database and prepare and submit annual reports on local initiatives against OSAEC and CSAEM to the National Coordination Center.

The EO also mandates a mandatory seminar and orientation on online sexual abuse and exploitation of children for all business owners applying for a business permit.

As part of the efforts to combat OSAEC, the Cebu City Council has ordered a ban on access to pornographic sites on Wi-Fi networks operated by the city.

It was reported that Cebu City ranks fourth in the number of OSAEC cases. This was according to Lucille Dejito, director of the International Justice Mission Cebu Program Office, who spoke on behalf of non-government organizations dealing with the Women and Children sector for the inter-agency council against trafficking at the national level.

She said according to their studies released in 2023, nearly half-a-million children in the Philippines were trafficked to produce child exploitation materials.

Dejito further said that Cebu City is one of the cities with the highest prevalence of OSAEC cases. She added that the study was conducted in collaboration with 24 other sectors from the Philippines and other countries. — (FREEMAN)