09 Oct The Dark Reality of Online Sexual Exploitation of Children

On October 8, 2020, Disini Law, in partnership with the Digital Freedom Network, hosted The Dark Reality of Online Sexual Exploitation of Children, a webinar that is a part of the Digital Transformation Thursday (DTT) series. This episode of DTT shined a light on the harsh reality of Online Sexual Exploitation of Children (OSEC) in the Philippines. The speakers discussed what OSEC is and how it was aggravated by the current situation in the Philippines. 

Atty. Lawrence Aritao of the International Justice Mission (IJM) talked about his experience working with IJM and how the pandemic has worsened OSEC in the country. He described it as “the perfect storm, really, when you have quarantine. The offenders abroad are at home, unable to go anywhere or do anything and then you also have children on lockdown in the PH who are locked down with their traffickers.” 

Caleb Caroll, an Internet Crimes Against Children Specialist at the IJM, cited several factors that contribute to the prevalence of OSEC in the Philippines.. These include a robust money transfer infrastructure, economic disparities, widespread internet access, relative impunity, and common language proficiency. Caroll believes that while the PH government has been quite progressive and proactive in trying to combat trafficking in the PH and combat OSEC, there is not enough people in the PNP Women and Children Protection Center (PNP-WCPC), NBI Anti-Human Trafficking Division (NBI-AHTD), and prosecutors in the DOJ Office of Cybercrime [to effectively address OSEC].”. 

The recording of the webinar may be accessed through the Disini Law Facebook page. For more upcoming Digital Transformation Thursday webinars, please visit https://dtt.ph/.