Gov’t urged: Provide programs for rescued cyberporn victims

THE government is encouraged to provide programs for children rescued from cyberpornography operations.

Lawyer Noemi Truya-Abarientos, litigation and advocacy coordinator of the Children’s Legal Bureau (CLB), made this call amid the latest arrest of a pregnant woman in her 20s in Barangay Ibabao, Cordova town on Saturday.

Aside from that authorities also rescued two children, whose ages are three and 12, and who are both related to the suspect.

“The government has to give better alternatives and lives to these children,” said Abarientos of CLB, a non-government organization that aims to champion the rights of children and protect children.

“The children are not aware that what was done to them by their mother was wrong. They will probably think that the government took away their mother,” she said.

She cited poverty as the primary reason why people engage in cyberpornography and she called on the government to address this.

“It’s deplorable that despite awareness of the people that it’s illegal to operate cybersex dens, many still operate it and many are mothers,” she said.

She also said that it is a challenge for the local government units (LGUs) and the law enforcement agencies to stop online exploitation of children.

“Short term is intensive operations against cyberporn. Government has to devote resources for this,” Abarientos said.

During last Saturday’s operation conducted by operatives of the Women and Children Protection Center-Visayas Field Unit (WCPC-VFU) in Barangay Ibabao, they caught the suspect in the act of offering to sexually abuse the two victims.

Police later found out that the suspect sexually abused the children in a live streamed video in exchange for money.

The rescued children were turned over to the Department of Social Welfare and Development for interventions and rehabilitation.

When sought for comment in a phone interview, Ibabao Barangay Captain Chito Bentasal said that he was shocked with the arrest of one of his constituents.

Bentasal said that he would closely monitor his barangay and would look for a possible solution to stop this kind of problem.

Lawyer John Tanagho, International Justice Mission Cebu field office director, for his part, encouraged the public to participate in ending the illegal activity in the neighborhood.

“We encourage members of the community to report cases of online exploitation to WCPC so that the violent abuse of children can be stopped,” Tanagho said in a statement.

Chief Insp. Leo Dofiles, Anti-Cybercrime Group in Central Visayas regional chief, is also calling on the newly elected Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) officials to help the Cordova town government to address the cyberpornography problem there.

“Next month when the SK officials of the town would assume their posts, it would be a good plan for them to study the (cyberpornography) cases and how to deal with them to stop the problem,” Dofiles said.