Shocked by Cordova

I couldn’t believe the report of what happened in Cordova town. How could a married couple allow their young kids to perform lewd acts in front of a webcam for a living? While the parents were quoted as saying they regretted their action and apologized to their kids, they did so only because they were caught by the National Bureau of Investigation. How many other families are doing this in Cordova or in Cebu? I don’t think the couple invented this business. They must have learned it from someone doing the same thing elsewhere.

Congratulations to Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale, head of of the Provincial Women’s Commission, and the NBI 7 for a job well done! What about the barangay officials? Didn’t they know what was going on in their neighborhood and try to stop it?

Where is our morality as the biggest Christian country in Asia? It it that low? As Christians, how do we respond to what was uncovered in Cordova? How do we stop it? The parents said they acted that way because of poverty. We know that many other crimes are committed because of poverty. Solving our poverty is the key.

But poverty itself is another big question. How do we eradicate it? The government says that poverty affects only 21 percent of the total number of families but up to 50 percent of respondents surveyed privately by the Social Weather Station put themselves in the poverty class.

The task is enormous. The government’s Conditional Cash Transfer Program, aimed at reducing poverty, has a P20-billion budget which is enough to reach only to 2 million families. What do we do with those not covered by the program? Is family planning going to be part of the solution?

For example, shall we close our eyes when poor families keep producing babies every year, even if they can’t give adequate food, clothing and shelter? Is giving birth to a child who would only die while still young from sickness and inattention a crime against humanity? What if the child lives but remains in poverty the rest of his life? Isn’t that also a crime against humanity?

While I was reading the report of the Cordova raid, my friend Paul again sent me an e-mail about how to help make the Philippines crime-free. I see that Paul has many good points. Let me share them with you here.

“It must be assumed that a considerable number of the foreigners who come to Cebu every year have a criminal record. This estimated number of unknown cases poses a serious threat to Cebu’s peace and order. It definitely puts our young Cebuano women in the line of danger, and this cannot be left unchecked and tolerated, economic benefits that we expect from a thriving tourism industry notwithstanding. The Provincial Board recently recognized the problem and decisively acted on it. A resolution, authored by PB member Sun J. Shimura, was approved last March 14. The resolution urges the Bureau of Immigration to conduct a background check on every foreign tourist who enters Cebu.

“PB member Shimura, in explaining his measure, said that the aim of the resolution is to prevent if not eradicate abuses against women and minors perpetuated by foreigners who come to Cebu. He said that ‘the intensified background check is one of the tough measures against human trafficking, which result in women and children falling prey to prostitution, pornography, exploitation and other crimes. Several crimes were committed recently against women and minors in Cebu, among them the filing of charges against seven topless women in Daanbantayan and the brutal killing of 6-year-old schoolgirl Ellah Joy Pique. Foreigners were implicated as prime suspects in both felonies. Shimura said that if foreign nationals are found to have criminal records in background checks, they should be denied entry to Cebu.’

“Rightly so! This Norwegian fellow, Sven-Erik Berger, for instance, spent 15 days in detention at the Cebu Provincial Police Office as the prime suspect after he and his fiancée were accused of kidnapping and killing Ellah Joy on Feb. 8. Through the efforts of Gov. Gwen Garcia who initiated the investigation that confirmed their alibi, they were later released from jail. But this little irrelevant detail should not put us off in doing serious background checks on foreign visitors to Cebu.

“The question now is how a potential criminal record of a foreigner planning to enter Cebu can be effectively checked. Once the hidden criminal lines up at Mactan International immigration, it is too late, because criminal records do not show in a passport. Should the measure be effective, it should be handled like a visa. One of the requirements of a visa is indeed a check on a potential criminal record of the foreign applicant. This check is done on request by the foreign national police authorities who will issue either a clearance or a report of any officially recorded penal facts. Thus no clearance, no visa for Cebu. Both travel agencies and airlines abroad with possible connection to Mactan should be instructed that foreigners have to present a valid Cebu visa issued by the Philippine Embassy prior to being allowed to board a plane to Cebu. Airlines generally refuse to let passengers board their planes to destinations requiring a valid visa if they fail to produce one.

“But wait. Visiting a ‘topless’ bar is not a crime in most countries and prostitution is also legally tolerated in most countries. Such ‘crimes’ will therefore not show in the criminal record of a foreign person. On the other hand, brutal killers are usually prosecuted and put to jail for a long term in their home country. They will hardly be in a position to plan a trip to Cebu. How do we then efficiently stop this dangerous foreign criminal influx?