9 Year Old Raped Repeatedly by Her Uncle and Cousin

Justice for Gwen in one of IJM Manila’s fastest cases ever
January 30, 2014

MANILA, THE PHILIPPINES – Two men were convicted this week in Manila and sentenced to at least 20 years in prison for raping a young girl named Gwen.* The assaults started when Gwen was 9 years old and lasted a few years. The perpetrators are her uncle and cousin, underscoring the violence with betrayal and pain.

When another family member found out about the abuse, she asked her church for advice on how to help. The church was sponsored by Compassion International, a child advocacy NGO. Compassion referred Gwen and her family to IJM Manila for the legal assistance they desperately needed.

Over the past two years, Gwen and her mother have been supported by Compassion and their local church. Their extended family has rallied behind them in spite of the sad rift the abuse created. IJM has also provided counselling for Gwen, and helped her prepare when she courageously decided to testify in the trial against her uncle and cousin.

IJM began advocating for Gwen in 2012, and the convictions were issued on January 27, 2014. The two-year trial is one of the fastest for IJM Manila, and it reflects a serious commitment from the judge to keep the hearings on track so that the child sexual assault case would reach a swift conclusion. Each man was convicted on several counts of rape and sentenced to at least 20 years in prison (and up to 40).

"After the judgment was read, Gwen said that she's happy and grateful. But she also expressed her sadness that the abuse had to happen, and that her own kin—her uncle and cousin—had to go to jail because of it," said IJM Attorney Ralph Catedral, who represented Gwen in the trial. He added, "The work of justice is always a hard and bumpy road, but a victory like this is a reminder that the journey is all worth it."

*A pseudonym. IJM - International Justice Mission - www.ijm.org/‎

Please pray for Gwen's full recovery physically, emotionally and spiritually.

Good News Stories from India, for a Change

27 Jan 2014,23:42 IST

Sinkhole in Model Town, Ludhiana, Punjab

Police Public interaction in Model Town (there are several Model Towns in India from an affluent neighborhood in Garia, Kolkata, to a suburb of Delhi. This one is in Ludhiana state in the Punjab) was a happy occasion for the poor Yadav family of Azad nagar as they were finally handed over their 13 year old missing child by the Ludhiana Police commissioner on Monday. The child was missing since January 11th.

3 hrs ago

Rural Dakshina Kannada in monsoon season

A total of 203 vigilance committees have been at the village levels to prevent trafficking of women and children in Dakshina Kannada. (Dakshina Kannada is a coastal district in the southwest state of Karnataka).

These committees have held 484 meetings at the ward level, nine meetings at the taluk level and, till April 2013, have registered 15 cases and solved 12, Gertrude Veigas, deputy director, department of women and child welfare said.

Houseboat, Kerala

14 Nov 2013,21:00 IST
Ensuring a world free of abuse for children will begin in Kerala, said Social Justice Minister Dr M K Muneer launching the three-month long state level campaign of an Abuse free world for children by the Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (KeSCPCR) on the Children's Day here on Thursday. The Minister gave the pledge on child rights which was rendered by the children and also launched the Commission's website.

Kerala is on the Malabar coast which is where Vasco de Gama became the first European to land in India by ship. They have been exporting spices from this area for 3000 years.

30 Oct 2013,22:19 IST

Andhra University vice chancellor, GSN Raju suggested the Andhra University NSS Advisory Committee to conduct special NSS camps to bring awareness on burning issues like Sexual Abuse. He said while heading the committee's meeting here on Wednesday. Raju further added that there are 56,000 NSS volunteers across all the universities in the country, but most of them represent from the university only.

Andhra U is one of the oldest and best universities in India. It is located in the state of Andhra Pradesh. It's interesting that there is a swastika at the top of the university symbol.

Andhra Pradesh

Sri Lankan Child Sex Offences Sky-rocketing

War-scarred Sri Lanka is experiencing an alarming scourge of child abuse, and the apparatus for dealing with the problem, UNICEF says, is “grossly inadequate.”

Every day, three to five children are raped in the island nation. Police statistics show the total number of child rapes in 2011 as 1,463; the figure jumped to 1,759 cases in 2012, according to a parliamentary report.

Police records also give a total of just over 2,000 sexual offenses against children, besides rape, in 2011; child-molestation cases in 2012 soared to over 5,000, according to parliamentary figures. The total number of all crimes against children — which besides sex crimes include crimes of violence, abduction, trafficking and other offenses — increased by a dramatic 64% between 2011 and 2012.

Some of the increases can be explained by growing awareness of child rights leading to increased reporting of incidents, but Sri Lanka remains a country where “the family unit is extremely tight-knit and the honor of the individual reflects on the entire family,” says Alia Whitney-Johnson, the founder of an NGO working with survivors of sexual abuse in Sri Lanka, who was interviewed by TIME via e-mail. “It is extremely difficult to report abuse, particularly incest.”

That means it’s unlikely that greater reporting is behind any but a small proportion of the growing figures. Instead, “the incidence of statutory rape and child abuse in Sri Lanka is a growing problem,” UNICEF says.

The traumas suffered during Sri Lanka’s 26-year civil war, which ended in 2009, may have a role to play. “When the dust settles, that’s when it hits them. That’s when you see severe violent reactions to small things that under normal circumstances would not have happened,” explains Reza Hossaini, UNICEF’s Sri Lanka representative. “It’s a combination of a culture of silence and culture of impunity,” he says, that breeds the “continuation of violence and abuse.”

But a more important factor may be the growing number of Sri Lankan women who seek to alleviate poverty at home by taking jobs overseas as domestic helpers. The children they leave behind are often defenseless against abusive fathers and predatory male relatives.

 (Even so, a comparison with the Philippines — another country where large numbers of women have been obliged to find work overseas — is disconcerting. Based on available official statistics, there are roughly 17 cases of child abuse for every 100,000 people in Sri Lanka; in the Philippines, there are just six cases per 100,000 head of population.) 

Good grief. We know how bad conditions are in the Philippines, for Sri Lanka to be nearly 3 times worse is hardly comprehendable. This country needs a lot of prayer.

School children playing on a beach in Colombo

Typical of the case files that cross the desk of Esther Gnanakan, a child psychologist at a Colombo NGO, is that of a 10-year-old girl sexually abused by her father over a year ago. Sudden movements and sounds still frighten the girl, she suffers from nightmares and cannot control her bladder. With a mother working as a domestic helper in the Middle East and relatives unwilling to take her in, she now lives in a juvenile shelter in the Sri Lankan capital. “The child has no other place to go,” Gnanakan says. “We’re just hoping the mother will come back.”

When Whitney-Johnson first arrived and met young girls who had survived sexual abuse, she says it opened her eyes “to the reality that many children face in Sri Lanka.” The girls she worked with were “survivors of incest, and many of them had mothers who were working abroad, leaving them in the care of alcoholic fathers or stepfathers.” As they matured, some had the courage to take legal action, but “as a result, they faced years of court cases,” Whitney-Johnson says.

While statutory protection for abused children exists, “procedures for investigation and prosecution of child abuse, witness protection and support for the victim” are all deficient, UNICEF says. Tellingly, a third of cases pending in Sri Lanka’s high courts are those involving children, who wait a harrowing five to eight years to get justice, if at all. “The corridors of justice for children are very long and very dark,” is how Hossaini puts it. As court dates are awaited, the perpetrators often roam free while their victims must live in foster homes or shelters.

The authorities are showing greater willingness to face up to the problem. There are now 36 protection bureaus for women and children in police stations across the country. Special courts to fast-track child-abuse cases have also been set up — there is one in suburban Colombo and another in the northern city of Jaffna. However, the dimensions of the crisis remain enormous: over 10,000 child-abuse cases are currently pending across all courts, and more are being added all the time.

Young Feminist Battles Sexual Violence Step by Step

A young Chinese woman, Xiao Meili, is attempting the 2,000-km walk from Beijing to Guangzhou to raise awareness of sexual abuse.

One hundred days. That’s how long it took Xiao Meili to walk from Beijing, in the arid north, to the humid, central city of Changsha. Since September, the 24-year-old has been trekking south and west across the Chinese heartland, along rumbling highways, around construction sites, down dusty streets. She stops along the way to send letters to local officials. Her plea: China must change the way it handles sex abuse.

Xiao Meili

That request is bolder than it might seem. In China, as elsewhere, it is difficult to talk about sexualized violence, particularly against kids — it’s awkward, for one, and nobody wants to think they or their children are at risk.

Over the last year, a string of high-profile incidents have started to change that. In one case, a 62-year-old primary school teacher was charged with sexually assaulting seven girls. His actions came to light when six of his victims developed genital warts. In another, 11 villagers were convicted of sexually abusing an 11-year-old girl “left behind” by migrant parents.

All too often, though, the issue goes unaddressed. Fear and stigma keep survivors and their families from coming forward, and those that do speak up are often shamed, not supported. Though the country last year vowed to crack down, laws remain weak. ”In China, we blame victims, not abusers,” says Xiao Meili over tea and sunflower seeds in Changsha, the capital city of Hunan province, in south-central China. ”That’s what we’re trying to change.”

A 2,000-km walk from Beijing to Guangzhou is not a bad way to capture attention. The sight of a young, female backpacker is relatively rare on China’s freeways, so people stop to ask questions and offer rides (which she declines). “They ask, ‘Why would you travel on foot? It would be so much easier to drive!’” she says. “Some say, ‘You’re crazy,’ but many express support.”

In a video about her journey, Xiao Meili (who uses her nickname for her activism) explains that walking is a way to reclaim a space — the street — where girls and women are sometimes at risk. It’s an idea that resonated online, where her writing, videos and drawings have earned a steady following on a popular Chinese microblog. Some of her readers offer money for accommodation, or a place to crash en route. Others, like Jia Wen, a 23-year-old art student, and Yuan Hang, a 24-year-old filmmaker, picked up sticks and joined her on the road. “Artists use form to change reality,” says Jia. “I want to see if we can use feminism to do the same thing.”

Xiao Meili and her friends are, in some ways, unexpected activists. Born in Sichuan province in 1989, Xiao Meili is part of a generation Chinese call post-’80s. Among older folks, the conventional wisdom is that these (mostly) only children of China’s economic boom are spoiled, apolitical bunch, more interested in designer fripperies than in social movements.

Raised by doting, aspirational parents many do indeed feel burdened by the pressure to succeed in a world where success is defined as a good education, a lucrative job, an apartment, marriage (to someone of the opposite sex), then a kid. For most families, cross-country protest walks are not part of the deal.

That, of course, is part of the appeal. Growing up, Xiao Meili cared little for politics. She was too busy studying. At university in Beijing, she started to read more, including feminist writing from the U.S. and Taiwan. Spending a semester in Taiwan gave her a glimpse of a “more equal” society. “China is more authoritarian and patriarchal, and this inequality leads to abuse,” she says.

In Beijing, where she lives when not on the road, Xiao Meili connected with feminists who are active, in different ways, in their communities. The ruling Chinese Communist Party sees collective action as a threat to social stability and often shuts down group demonstrations. Yet there is room for creative resistance. Xiao Meili starred in a Chinese adaptation of The Vagina Monologues, and on Valentine’s Day 2012, she dressed up in a blood-drenched gown to protest domestic violence.

When it comes to her family, she’s more reserved. “My parents don’t know I’m here. If I told them, they would try to oppose me,” she says. Besides, “they wouldn't understand what I am doing here.” Jia’s parents wanted her to take the civil-service exam and get a steady job. “I don’t want that way of life,” she says. “I want to be freer.”

Being on the road offers that sense of freedom, though most days unfold in much the same way. Xiao Meili and her supporters wake up around 8 a.m. and start walking around 9 a.m. When they reach a new town or city, they stop by the post office to send letters asking local officials to improve sexual education, screen teachers and better investigate abuse claims.

And so it was on Day 101. On the cool, smoggy morning of Jan. 17, Xiao Meili, Yuan and Jia gathered around 9:15 a.m. to resume their journey south. For the next few weeks, as they make their way through Hunan province, they’ll be joined by three fresh recruits, all students, who read about the project online and joined up. First stop: the post office.

After mailing some letters, they set out. They walk slowly toward the edge of the city, where high-rise buildings are rapidly sprouting. Momentarily lost at the edge of a half-demolished street, they pause to consult their phones. “That way,” someone gestures, pointing the way through the mud. They hope to reach Guangzhou by spring.

Australia's Royal Commission Hears More Horror Stories About the Salvation Army Homes

A former resident of the Bexley Boys Home has recalled being told to "shut up and get on with it" after his mother died.

Kevin Marshall arrived at the home as a six year-old boy in 1966.

His mother died in February 1967 of a drug overdose.

"I was basically denied a chance to grieve," Mr Marshall told the hearing. "I was obviously crying. A small boy, very upset, very distraught."

Mr Marshall then gave evidence that he was sexually and physically abused by both Salvation Army officers and non-Salvation Army members working at the home, until he left as a 14-year-old boy.

The inquiry has also heard from a man known only as GH, who arrived at the Gill Memorial Home as a four-year-old boy in 1966.

He has burst into tears while recalling being cornered and raped by an older boy when he was seven-years-old.

"I am not sure that I knew at the time what sexual abuse was and was not," he said. "I was very young and I never had any sex education or discussions about sex."

GH revealed that two years later, he decided to become a junior soldier with the Salvation Army so he could play the cornet in the Army band.

He recalls being treated differently by senior officers as a result and was "better protected".

"I did not at all get physically or sexually abused when I put that uniform on," he said.

GH remains a member of the Salvation Army, describing the organisation as his "rock" and "family".

The Royal Commission has already prompted the Salvation Army to take action against one of its retired officers.

Late last week, Major John McIver was suspended from the organisation pending further investigations.

The Sydney man denies sexually assaulting boys at Bexley and Indooroopilly in the 1960s and 1970s.

Kevin Marshall also named Mr McIver as one of two men who informed him of his mother's death in 1967.

He retired in 2004.

Two of the other accused officers have died, and the other two were dismissed from the Salvation Army in 1974 and 2005.

Lewis Blayse was abused as a boy in the Alkira home at Indooroopilly in Queensland between 1958 and 1960 and helped to raise awareness of the issue.

He died of a heart attack on Friday night.

Salvation Army's Alkira Home for Boys

"His experience led him to become a strong voice for the victims of child sexual abuse, and he contributed significantly to the community concerns which led to the creation of this Royal Commission," Justice McClellan told the hearing.

Counsel representing the Salvation Army, Kate Eastman SC, also expressed her sympathies.

"We acknowledge his very strong advocacy on behalf of the residents and we express on behalf of the Army condolences to Mr Blayse's family and friends," she said.

The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests has released a statement, saying Mr Blayse "gave up a PHD and promising career in science to focus instead on justice for the children no-one loved, no-one protected and Australia forgot". Now there was a hero. RIP Mr Blayse, you've earned it. Your job is done. God bless you.

The Alkira home is one of four homes being investigated, along with the Riverview Training Farm in Queensland, the Bexley Boys Home in Sydney and the Gill Memorial Home at Goulburn in southern New South Wales.

Woody Allen's Adoptive Daughter Dylan Farrow Renews Molestation Claim

Allen was investigated on child molestation allegations but never charged.

Dylan Farrow has renewed molestation allegations against Woody Allen, claiming the movie director sexually assaulted her when she was 7 after he and actress Mia Farrow adopted her.

Woody Allen

In an open-letter to The New York Times posted online Saturday, Dylan Farrow commented about the 1992 incident. In a letter to op-ed columnist Nicholas Kristof, she said she was moved to speak out because of Hollywood's continued embrace of Allen.

"That he got away with what he did to me haunted me as I grew up," wrote 28-year-old Farrow. "I was stricken with guilt that I had allowed him to be near other little girls."

The New York Times reported that Allen declined comment. Also, representatives for Allen and for former partner Mia Farrow also did not immediately return requests for comment Saturday from The Associated Press. Allen, who attended Saturday night's New York Knicks game, has long maintained his innocence.

The 'Happy' Family

In the letter, Dylan Farrow claims that in 1992 at the family's Connecticut home, Allen led her to a "dim, closet-like attic" and "then he sexually assaulted me." Farrow didn't specify Allen's actions, but described other abusive behaviour.

Farrow said Allen would have her get in bed with him, and at other times "place his head in my naked lap and breathe in and breathe out."

"For as long as I could remember, my father had been doing things to me that I didn't like," said Farrow. "These things happened so often, so routinely, so skillfully hidden from a mother that would have protected me had she known, that I thought it was normal."

Allen, now 78, was investigated on child molestation claims for the alleged 1992 incident in Connecticut, but prosecutors elected not to charge him.

The handling of the investigation was criticized after Litchfield County state attorney Frank S. Maco said in a press conference there was "probable cause" to charge Allen, although he chose not to. A disciplinary panel found that Maco may have prejudiced the then-ongoing custody battle between Allen and Mia Farrow by making an accusation without formal charges.

The 1992 allegation came shortly after Allen became involved with Mia Farrow's adopted daughter, Soon-Yi Previn. Allen, then in his mid-50s, was not the adoptive father of Previn, who was about 19 at the time. The two married in 1997 and have two adopted daughters.

Though many fans never forgave Allen for his romance with Previn, the director's career was largely uninterrupted. He has continued to release a new film almost every year, with his latest, Blue Jasmine, earning three Academy Award nominations, including a screenwriting nomination for Allen.

Dylan Farrow's open-letter was precipitated by Allen being honored at the Golden Globes with the Cecil B. DeMille lifetime achievement award. Allen didn't attend as he largely abstains from awards shows. But during the telecast's tribute, Ronan Farrow tweeted: "Missed the Woody Allen tribute - did they put the part where a woman publicly confirmed he molested her at age 7 before or after Annie Hall?"

Ronan Farrow is the lone biological child of Allen and Mia Farrow, though Farrow has said her former husband Frank Sinatra could be his father. Ronan Farrow is estranged from Allen.

A rebuke followed last week when Robert Weide, director of the PBS American Masters documentary on Allen, argued in a lengthy account on the Daily Beast that many were unaware of the facts of Allen's relationship with Previn and that the incident with Dylan Farrow was unproven.

Dylan Farrow, who said she now lives happily married in Florida under another name, urged people not to forget her side of the story and lamented "a world that celebrates her tormenter."

NY State Police Chief Arrested on Child Pornography Charges

Mount Pleasant Police Chief Brian Fanelli was arrested and charged with downloading child pornography on his computer. Mount Pleasant is about 25 miles north of New York City.

Mount Pleasant Police Chief Brian Fanelli

Fanelli, who had taught sex-abuse awareness classes to children, said he started viewing child pornography to prepare for his classes. Then, unfortunately, he started viewing it for pleasure. Obviously he didn't realize, or perhaps underestimated, the addictive power of pornography.

Fanelli was a respected guy in his community and his church. He taught catechism.

Homeland Security arrested Fanelli and confiscated two computer from his home. They found 120 images of children having sex with other children and with adults - children as young as 7 years old.

Fanelli has been suspended with pay from the Mount Pleasant Police and is out on $50,000 bail.

Please pray for this man. He may yet be a force for good again.

Alcohol Involved in 50% of Sexual Violence - US Study

The Government is failing to prevent rape and sexual violence and is ignoring the role alcohol plays in sexual aggression, according to the Rape Crisis Network Ireland (RCNI).

The Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Frances Fitzgerald, who opened the seminar, said Irish people “need to move away from our ambivalence to alcohol.”

Frances Fitzgerald
Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

Fiona Neary, Executive Director of RCNI, agreed with the Minister. “This country has got to stop being complacent about binge drinking and allowing drink companies to target young people with cheap alcohol,” she said.

The RCNI launched two reports on Tuesday, highlighting the role of alcohol in sexual violence, and the lack of information about sexual behaviour amongst “older children” - those over the age of 12.

According to Dr Antonia Abbey, an expert in sexual assault perpetration from Wayne State University, Michigan, alcohol is involved in about 50 per cent of incidences of sexual violence, although it’s not the sole cause.

“There are a lot of other risk factors involved including hostility towards women, sexual dominance, and childhood sexual, physical and emotion abuse,” she said.

Pádraig MacNeela, acting head of School of Psychology at NUI Galway, and author of the report into alcohol and sexual violence, said that university students’ attitudes to alcohol affect their understanding of “consent to engage in sexual activity.”

“The underlying issue is there’s a lack of confidence amongst our young people,” said Dr MacNeela. “We found that drunk sex is often the norm, it inspires confidence to approach somebody.”

Participants in the NUIG research revealed they would be too embarrassed to talk openly about using a condom with their partner. The research also found that sexual consent tends to be unspoken and that people have doubts about reporting sexual violence. 

“They’re not confident gardaí (Irish Police) will listen,” said Dr MacNeela, “the prospect of credibility is really frightening for people”.

Dr Clíona Saidléar, speaking about the second report, highlighted the need for the Government to pay more attention to sexual violence amongst older children. “Irish people are reluctant to ask children about their experience of sexual violence,” said Dr Saidléar. “No child born after 1983 has had their experience of sexual abuse measured,” she added.

Dr Saidléar called on the Government to review the Irish child protection infrastructure. “As older children move into a more sexualised world we need to have the tools to work with them,” she said. “We need an explicit zero tolerance of sexual violence.”

The Minister for Children and Youth Affairs has invited the RCNI to submit the documents to the new National Children’s Framework so they can “take on board some of the recommendations”. 

Ms Fitzgerald also called on the Department of Education to respond to the research findings.

Orphans Told They were the Product of Evil, Satanic Relationships

A priest told a former resident of a Derry residential home run by nuns that he must never repeat allegations of sex and other abuse.

A witness told the Historical Institutional Abuse inquiry, which is investigating allegations of ill treatment of children at 13 care homes in Northern Ireland before 1995, the priest told him to stay silent about his claims concerning the home at Termonbacca in Derry, run by the Poor Sisters of Nazareth.

St Joseph's Home, Termonbacca, Derry

The witness, who cannot be identified, said he approached a priest later in life and told him of physical and sexual abuse he suffered.

He said the priest replied: “You must never speak about this. You and the other orphans are bastards, you are the product of an evil and satanic relationship.”

The witness said: “When a priest tells you that, that sums up how an orphan was perceived. What chance did I have?”

On the third day of oral hearings the inquiry heard hours of harrowing testimony from two former residents of the Termonbacca home who wished to tell their stories publicly.

The first witness, who said he was known at the home by his ID number, told of habitual beatings, of terror, loneliness and abuse. Telling the inquiry of his time at the home was “a day of freedom” he said, adding that through the inquiry he had met one of his brothers for the first time in decades.

“Looking into the eyes of my eldest brother – he threw his arms around me and we cried. They killed our family.”

He said he had no idea his brothers were also at the same institution. !!!!????

In later testimony, the witness confirmed that while still a young child at Termonbacca he deliberately wet the bed to protect himself from sexual abuse.

An image above a door at Nazareth House on Bishop Street in Derry
one of the four homes under investigation

“What abuser would want to drop the hand on a child saturated in his own urine?” he said.

He referred to the institution being run by “the Taliban” such was the nuns’ cruelty, but also insisted some individual nuns were very kind, as were civilian workers there.

The witness recalled that at night, a boy would start crying for his mother then another boy would also start.
“Within 60 seconds we were all crying for our mammies even though we didn't know what ‘mammy’ meant,” he said. Unfortunately, I can identify with this.

Another witness cited rough treatment and fear of the Christian Brothers for deliberately failing an exam that would have got him into the grammar school. “I deliberately failed my 11-plus as I didn't want to go to the Christian Brothers,” he said. “I didn't want to go there and ‘get more’.”

Baths at Termonbacca were “horrendous” he added, saying children were dipped like sheep in a bath filled with Jeyes Fluid. Jeyes Fluid is a brand of disinfectant meant for outdoor use only. There are safety measures to follow if you get it on your skin or in your eyes.

“We were scrubbed with a deck scrubber, believe it or not. You were called a dirty whatever,” he said.

Like other witnesses, he said Saturdays were spent polishing floors. The boys linked up and polished as a team, citing a rhyme as they worked: “Rub her back, rub her back, before I put this broom across your back,” he said.

Junior counsel Joseph Aiken later presented to the inquiry biographical details of three nuns who had worked at Termonbacca. Testimony from nuns who lived and worked in Derry is due to be heard later.

He referred the chairman to a nun’s witness statement in which she talks of a happy time at the children’s home. She had no recollection of physical abuse or punishment being administered. Perhaps she had dementia?

Philippines Urged to Step Up War on Child Porn and Sex Abuse

Lawmakers blast Manila’s failure to crack down on paedophiles, cyberporn syndicates

Manila: Members of the Gabriela party-list on Saturday lambasted the government for its inability to crack down on child porn syndicates.

Gabriela is a party in the Philippines government advocating for women and children's rights. 

“There is a glaring inability of the government agencies to stop paedophilia and cyber pornography,” a statement by Emmi de Jesus and Luzviminda Ilagan, Gabriela party-list representatives, said.

Gabriela’s statement was issued in the wake of reports that child pornography continued to thrive despite the passing of the Anti-Child Pornography Act in 2009.

The two lawmakers challenged police to paralyse the operations of syndicates engaged in cyber-pornography involving minors in many parts of the country.

Sweetie

De Jesus and Ilagan also filed House Resolution 453, which also called on the House Committees on the Welfare of Children and Women and Gender Equality to conduct an inquiry into the case of ‘Sweetie’, a 10-year old virtual Filipino girl created by Dutch-based children’s right group Terre Des Homes, to track down paedophiles in various countries.

Sweetie lured potential paedophiles into an online chat, where she offered to have virtual sex via video cam, with the unsuspecting paedophiles paying for the service using their credit cards.

De Jesus said that in the 10 weeks that the Sweetie sting operation had been operational, Terre Des Homes had reported some 20,000 people from 71 countries had approached Sweetie asking her to perform sexual acts.

Among those who tried to solicit Sweetie’s services are potential clients from the Philippines.

The Terres Des Homes operation was followed by reports published by AFP citing that a number of child sex operations had been streamed live from the village of Ibabao, Cordova town, Cebu.

The report revealed that the abuse of children had taken place with the consent of their parents, who also featured in the videos.

Aside from Cebu, De Jesus pointed to a recent study conducted by the National Statistics Coordination Board that most of the cyber pornography victims were from Manila, the Ilocos region, Central Visayas and the Zamboanga Peninsula.

She said that on the basis of the Anti-Child Pornography Act of 2009, it is the state which has the responsibility to protect every child from all forms of exploitation and abuse, including the use of children in pornographic performances.

Earlier, the Presidential Palace warned parents who force their own children into engaging in cybersex that they would be brought to account.

Responding to a question during an interview on state-run radio station dzRB last week, presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said laws to protect minors existed and added that parents who consent to their children being abused would be prosecuted.