SEN. Sherwin Gatchalian on Sunday warned that cybersex trafficking of children could spike amid the expanded Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine. “Now that children are focused on the internet, we need to strengthen our measures to protect them [against cybersex trafficking] and prosecute the people behind this [crime],” he said in Filipino. The senator urged DepEd to leverage its online learning platform “DepEd Commons” to increase awareness on the dangers, prevention, and reporting of Online Sexual Exploitation of Children. These efforts should also involve women and children protection units such as the PNP-Women and Children Protection Center and the National Bureau of Investigation-Violence Against Women and Children Desk, he said. Gatchalian in 2019 filed Senate Bill 735 or the “Human Trafficking Preventive Education Program Act” to orient Filipino children and youth about their rights, government protection measures, and the dangers posed by different forms of trafficking, including online sexual exploitation.

Source: Manila Times April 12, 2020 18:00 UTC