Child victims to continue schooling, counselling

THE six children who were rescued from a couple accused of engaging in cyber pornography in Cordova town are undergoing counseling for “deep-seated trauma.”

Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale said the children, whose privacy is protected by law, are staying in a secure facility for debriefing by a psychologist who is is trained child protection specialist.

She said the Capitol will shoulder the expenses for the children for now.

“Classes will start next week and these kids will go to a school near the center,” Magpale said.

The vice governor, who co-chairs the Provincial Women’s Commission, said they will look for a relative to care for the children, aged three to 15 years old, while their parents are in detention.

For now, the minors can’t go home to barangay Ibabao, Cordova town, or attend school there.

The rehabilitation of the children is a priority, Magpale said.

Their parents are detained in the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) 7 stockade, a basement room with no windows.

Magaple e assured that the mother, who is six months pregnant, will be given prenatal medical care.

There is no bail for persons charged with violation of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act.

She said the mother was not allowed to see her children on advice of the child care experts.

Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said she will meet with Cordova Mayor Adelino Sitoy and town officials on June 8 to discuss the presence of cybersex dens in their area.

“I was told by the Cordova mayor that they had information about the family. One of their councilors had a laptop that had a video about them,” Garcia said in reference to the couple.

The governor said she is studying the possibility of crafting a tougher ordinance to protect women and children because there is no existing law against cyber pornography.

Garcia will also meet next Monday with a foreign fund agency that is proposing a child care center for abused minor victims.