Child abuse in any form is totally reprehensible and the Church will fight it in every way possible.
That was the message delivered recently by Bishop Ruperto Santos of Balanga, vice chairman of the Episcopal Commission for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People, in a pastoral reminder to the faithful.
The prelate warned of “a more dangerous and extremely deadly virus lurking around us aside from Covid-19.”
These, he said, are the “human traffickers and sexual offenders, the worst and venomous virus on earth, taking every opportunity” to exploit the youth and even young children who are bored at home and spend most of their time navigating the internet during the pandemic.
“We should condemn the viruses of human trafficking and online sexual exploitation, do what is necessary to eradicate this worst endemic of traffickers and sexual offenders,” Bishop Santos said.
“We should do everything to protect our children, our youth from these evil doers. Everyone should be vigilant to prevent our children from being unwilling victims,” he emphasized.
The bishop urged Filipinos to “be brave enough to report, and to bear witness to these evil deeds. It is only then we can make sure that our youth, our children, are not only socially distant from those human viruses of trafficking and exploitation but we must contain these perpetrators. We must exhaust all legal means to investigate, prosecute and punish them.”
It’s not only the Church that condemns human trafficking and online child exploitation.
The national government has also taken note of the spike in online child exploitation during the lockdown against the deadly coronavirus.
The Department of Justice, citing police reports, said cybercrime cases, including child exploitation, had increased because of extensive use of internet and computer technology during the lockdown.
Justice Undersecretary Emmeline Aglipay-Villar said child exploitation cases have increased because of extensive online activities, with facilitators of online sex rings—many of them relatives of victims— getting stuck in their homes and without any stable income.
“Facilitators are mostly parents or relatives of the kids, whom the kids trust. While on lockdown they are together 24/7, including the facilitators. Since they are all at home, there is a chance for them to get exploited,” Villar said, adding that suspects are daily wage earners who needed cash to get by.
The official said they have been carrying out operations to rescue children who have been victims of online sexual exploitation.
Authorities earlier said online child sex abuse cases have “tripled” in the Philippines while on lockdown.
Meanwhile, in yet another proof that child exploitation and abuse knows no borders, a Vatican diplomat has sought the help of Filipino bishops for information about a Spanish priest accused of abusing minors and believed to have been hiding in the Philippines.
Filipino Archbishop Bernardito Auza, who is Pope Francis’ envoy to Spain and Andorra, said Fr. José Maximiano Campos Ruiz has gone missing and may have fled to the Philippines.
“There are reasons to worry about his presence in our country given the serious accusation against him,” San Fernando, Pampanga, Archbishop Florentino Lavarias said in a recent circular.
Archbishop Romulo Valles, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, vowed a firm response to clergy sex abuses, saying there would be no cover-ups.
In July 2019, the CBCP agreed to create a new office that will look into the cases of clerical abuse and augment efforts at the diocesan level.
The Church is on the right track in sparing no effort to fight child exploitation and abuse. It needs to work closely with law enforcement and concerned citizens to bring to justice those engaged in child exploitation.
Bishop Santos is correct in pointing out: “Our Church is a mother. A mother speaks and stands for her children, especially for the vulnerable and voiceless children. She speaks to comfort, to console, and to confront those who make them suffer. Our Church, as a mother, defends and protects her flock; ensuring to make right what is wrong and to correct them by doing what is best and beneficial to her children. She must see to it that they are truly safe at home.”
Ernesto M. Hilario writes on political and social justice issues for various publications in the Philippines. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official editorial position of LiCAS.news.
