An emotional President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Monday urged the government and the public to take collective action and exert extra effort to eradicate cases of Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation of Children (OSAEC).
In his speech during the “Iisang Nasyon, Iisang Aksyon: Tapusin ang Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation of Children (OSAEC) Ngayon Summit 2024” in Makati City, President Marcos emphasized the need for the government to strengthen its efforts against the sexual exploitation of children online.
“For us to allow this to happen in our country, it brings to me an overwhelming sense of shame because being in government, being in public service, we are not doing enough. We must do more,” a teary-eyed President Marcos said.
“It is sexual abuse and exploitation of children. And I leave it to your imagination, and I would imagine in some cases your imagination cannot even begin to fathom what is done to these poor children – to our poor children,” the President added.
The President said he became emotional while hearing the story of an OSAEC victim, her ordeal, and the suffering she went through. He added that hearing the stories of other children who went through the same experience prompted him to call for more action from the government.
“And so, we must do more. We must do more. One of the most important parts of the Filipino culture is family. We are known around the world for that. We are so well known for it that we are – Filipinos are the number one caretakers of foreign children all around the world,” President Marcos said.
“We must do more,” he stressed.
Despite the OSAEC cases in the Philippines, President Marcos acknowledged the aggressive actions of the DOJ-Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) for organizing the summit, along with the International Justice Mission (IJM).
“We are here today to confront one of the greatest challenges of our time. The challenges that we face in government are always the challenges that are brought to us by the future and what exemplifies our future more; what symbolizes our future more than our children,” the President said.
“And, that is why these strikes at the very heart of our society. It undermines the foundations of what we are, of who we are as a people,” he added.
Records from the Philippine National Police (PNP) show that 1,099 victims were rescued from 237 operations, 138 suspects were arrested, 139 cases were filed, and 41 perpetrators were convicted. | PND
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