GIFT-GIVING President Marcos and first lady Liza Araneta-Marcos hand out gifts and food treats to children from selected shelters and orphanages during the nationwide gift-giving day in Malacañang. —File photo from MARIANNE BERMUDEZ
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has ordered government agencies to crack down on online sexual abuse or exploitation of children (OSAEC) and child sexual abuse or exploitation materials (CSAEM).
On Wednesday, Marcos met with officials from the Philippine National Police (PNP), Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) to discuss the prevalence of child pornography in the country.
“Yesterday, at the meeting, the President was visibly distressed, very bothered and clearly stressed with the information that was relayed to him, which is why he gave the directive, a very strong directive, to the DOJ, to the PNP and other law enforcement agencies to further intensify the efforts,” said DOJ spokesperson Mico Clavano in a Palace briefing on Thursday.
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In an ambush interview following the briefing, Clavano said Marcos hoped to phase out the crimes by the end of his term.
“Sabi niya, because this is very un-Filipino like to do this. So, let’s go back to our real culture which is family, di ba?” said the DOJ spokesperson.
(He said it is very un-Filipino to do this. So, let’s go back to our real culture which is family, right?)
According to Executive Director of the DOJ’s Center for Anti-Online Child Sexual Abuse Atty. Margarita Magsaysay, Marcos told the DOJ to focus on increasing the number of prosecutions.
“The President noted that we are doing a lot of initiatives but he wants us to consolidate our efforts and focus more on each agency’s expertise,” said Magsasay.
“So, he was saying in so far as the DOJ is concerned, focus all your efforts into the prosecution,” she noted.
Meanwhile, the DILG was tasked to create ordinances so that barangays will know how to report cases of online child abuse.
The Department of Information and Communications Technology was directed to work with the private sector to generate the data to track the perpetrators.
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In an Instagram post on Thursday, Marcos said he is “determined to protect our children and show no mercy to offenders in eradicating all forms of child abuse.”
Magsaysay said it is difficult to fully determine how rampant the cases of OSAEC and CSAEM are due to underreporting, since they are mostly perpetrated by families and communities.