EDITORIAL - Parents, abusers

Just days after the Philippines was tagged as one of the global hotspots in child cyberporn, a news feature on a remote village in Cebu highlights one of the biggest factors behind the problem. The report of Agence France Presse showed that in the village of Ibabao with a population of only 5,000, parents themselves sold their children to crime rings for online pornography.

A Filipino woman reportedly arrived in the village some years ago and introduced residents to websites where pedophiles paid to watch children performing sex acts. Clients reportedly paid up to $100 each to watch live-streamed sexual abuse of children. It wasn’t too difficult to find cooperative parents in the impoverished community. A small bungalow converted into a sex den was located right next to a day care center.

Parents traffic their children for sex not only in remote villages but also in Metro Manila and other urban centers. Some children are also used by their parents for organized crime. Teenagers are used as drug couriers and jueteng bet collectors, in the belief that they will be immune from arrest because of the Juvenile Justice Law. In Metro Manila, children are deployed by their parents as pickpockets and cell phone snatchers.

Tougher laws are needed to penalize such parents. Legislation, however, must be backed by more resources to care for children who are separated from abusive parents or guardians and become wards of the state. Foster care and adoption programs also need to be enhanced.

Some parents can still mend their ways. But there are parents who are beyond redemption or rehabilitation behind bars. Their children need a lot of help, from the government and concerned groups, to overcome the scars of abuse and face a brighter future.