One in four young Filipinos have been sexually violated, according to a report released this week by the UN children’s agency Unicef and the Philippine government.
Based on a survey of 13- to 24-year-olds conducted last year, the report found (pdf) that most of the violations happen in the children’s homes, communities, or during dates; that boys are more at risk of experiencing sexual violence than girls; and that children aged 13 to 17 experience the most sexual violence, including forced sex.
As if this weren’t bad enough, the nation has also become “the global epicenter of the live-stream sexual abuse trade,” the agency reported earlier this year. Traffickers use chatrooms and social media to offer online child sex performances, an industry that tens and thousands of Filipino children fall prey to, it added.
Cybersex dens exploiting children are found in the country’s big cities, including Manila, Cebu, and Davao. Operators live-stream and record acts from small rooms equipped with laptops, webcams, and routers.
As with chronic malnutrition and child labor—two other deep-seated problems in the Philippines—poverty is a large factor behind the proliferation of the dens. An investigation into one in the Manila slums revealed it paid local children 150 pesos ($3) to participate, and that in some cases the children were brought by their own parents… Read More>>
Source: Quartz
