Desperation and poverty make Filipino women and children more prone to online sexual exploitation and human trafficking, chief of the Blas Ople Policy Center Susan Ople said on Thursday, June 29.
“We fear that desperation and poverty would make the Filipino poor more susceptible to human trafficking through the proliferation of cybersex dens as job opportunities in the Middle East become less abundant,” Ople said as quoted by the Philippine Star.
Cybersex dens are easily set up by foreigners to entice Filipino children and parents to engage in online child sex trafficking.
“As an English speaking nation, foreign pedophiles find it easier to connect with potential victims in the Philippines, aside from the fact that Filipinos easily appreciate the attention given to them by the foreigners,” Ople added.
Ople urged the administration under President Duterte to combat human trafficking and protect women and children from these new online threats.
“The Philippine society must guard against online sexual exploitation, because no less than the lives and dignity of our children are at stake,” Ople said.
The Blas Ople Policy Center partnered with the International Justice Mission Philippines to help raise awareness about the sexual exploitation of children online.
Credit: Philippine Star
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