Child rights group to gov’t: Implement laws, policies to protect children from online sexual abuse

MANILA, Philippines — Save the Children Philippines appealed to the government to implement laws and policies that would protect children from online sexual abuse and exploitation.

The child rights group discovered that according to the Philippine government’s National Baseline Study on Violence against Children, one in two Filipino children experience online abuse while one in four is being exposed to sexually explicit content.

“The government should pass and implement laws and policies that would protect children from OSAEC (Online Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children), have prevention programs and accessible services for children and their families, implement widespread information dissemination on OSAEC, and prosecute those who are exploiting our children and women through the use of information, communication technologies,” lawyer Albert Muyot, chief executive officer of Save the Children Philippines, said in a statement.

Muyot also underscored that the  Internet Service Providers and business owners who operate internet shops should establish safety measures to ensure protection of children from online exploitation.

Another child expert in Save the Philippines also asked parents to educate their children on responsible usage of the internet to prevent online exploitation.

“The family should provide the first layer of protection for children. A good relationship between parents and their children will ensure that they will listen to their parent’s advice, and that the parent can respectfully monitor their children’s use of the internet,” Wilma Bañaga, Child Protection Advisor of Save the Children, said.

The National Baseline Study on Violence against Children also showed that 29 percent of children have been receiving sexual messages and some three percent of children said they sent nude images or videos of their sexual activities on the internet.