Manila: The Philippines and Netherlands has agreed to initiate joint action against a common scourge victimising the youth and citizens of both countries.
In simple ceremonies at the Department of Justice in Manila on Wednesday, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima and Netherlands Ambassador to the Philippines Marion Derckx, signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) establishing tighter partnership against human trafficking, child sex tourism and child pornography.
De Lima took note of the increasing abuse of children through online exploitation and pornography. She sent a strong message to these perpetrators: “Not under my watch.”
“The signing of the MOU between the Netherlands and the Philippines signifies the commitment of the government in addressing the human trafficking problem and its intent to work closely with like-minded partners to end the exploitation of the vulnerable,” De Lima said.
While expressing gratitude to the government of Netherlands for its support, she also called on the international community to continue with helping the Philippines in putting a stop to these criminal activities.
According to reports, the Philippines counts as one of the top sources of human trafficking. Lately, it has gained an unsavoury reputation as a “powerhouse” in providing online, person to person entertainment through internet chat rooms where clients virtually undress and exploit underage minors from the Philippines.
The agreement signed by De Lima and Derckx covers wide areas of cooperation which includes the investigation and prosecution of trafficking in human beings, sexual abuse of minors, production, import and/or export, distribution and selling of child abuse images, possession of child abuse images for sexual exploitation, and travelling child sex offenders.
Derckx, in her statement said the Philippines shares the same comprehensive approach with the Netherlands in building barriers against human trafficking.
“There is no opt-out (In this fight). We all share in the responsibility to stop traffickers. For that, cooperation, also on the international level, is more than necessary,” Derckx said.
To combat human trafficking and cybercrime, the Philippines has been strengthening its capabilities in the legal front. In 2012 the county passed its Anti-Cybercrime Law and upgraded its edict concerning access devices.
Cybercriminals had before taken advantage of the country’s arcane laws against crimes perpetrated through new mediums such as the internet to exploit their victims who are usually located in rural areas of the country.
