Old story
Old story
Updated 00:55am (Mla time) Nov 20, 2004
Inquirer News Service
Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the November 20, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer
THE INITIAL findings of a recent study conducted by End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes (Ecpat), a nongovernment advocacy group, no longer come as a surprise. They only confirm that prostitution in the Philippines is indeed a worsening problem; and, just like leaving the country to earn a living abroad, it has become a means of survival for thousands and thousands of Filipino families long struggling to at least keep their heads above a deepening poverty.
One finding--although already public knowledge and an accepted fact--especially stands out: the recruiters of sex workers, especially children are "immediate family members [or] people known to family and friends." This speaks volumes not only about how desperate many of our poor have become but also about how poverty has corrupted the moral values of the only predominantly Christian nation in Asia.
Consider this: In the 1990s, there were already between 40,000 and 100,000 child prostitutes in the Philippines. These figures do not include prostitutes above the age of 16. And not all of them were female; a substantial number were very young boys. The Ecpat study says many of them found themselves in Malaysia and Japan. In fact, to be referred to as a "Japayuki," a term referring to Filipina entertainers in Japan, does not exactly invite respect in a community. And if it is any indication as to how serious the problem of prostitution has become, inspirational writer Paulo Coelho has a Filipina prostitute plying her trade between Brazil and Switzerland in one of his best-selling books, "11 Minutes."
Just as it has been known as a leading provider of domestic helpers, Christian Philippines is also fast becoming known as a primary source of prostitutes. Such reputation has brought into our shores not only a steady stream of pedophiles masquerading as foreign tourists; it has also drawn perverts masquerading as foreign investors.
Inquirer columnist Rina Jimenez-David has observed that "cybersex" could be "the fastest-growing segment of the sex industry in the country." Edu Manzano, chair of the Optical Media Board, after raiding a cybersex facility in Angeles, Pampanga, expressed shock upon discovering that "40 percent of all the materials we confiscate now consists of child pornography" and that an increasing number of sex videos are made in the Philippines with Filipino children as "actors." Many, if not most, of the producers of these revolting pornographic materials are said to be foreigners. It is believed that because of the proliferation of these materials, more Filipinos have become pedophiles themselves.
The Ecpat study notes that the recruiters of the sex workers have "indications of guilt but they often justify it by saying they are helping the family [and] helping alleviate poverty in the community." There are also those who want prostitution to be legalized--accepting it as a "fact of life," the oldest profession that mankind has been stuck with "since time immemorial" and cannot do away with till kingdom come--if only "to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases." By the same logic, counter those opposed to the idea, illegal drugs and some crimes should be legalized because we cannot completely stop them.
Is the government really helpless in containing prostitution? It has been pointed out that the Philippines already has one of the most stringent laws against child prostitution, but enforcement of such laws leaves much to be desired. The general perception is that this is so because influential public officials have always been among the most generous patrons of prostitutes (take the case of Keanna Reeves and former Rep. Romeo Jalosjos) if they are not themselves members of prostitution syndicates. Thus prostitution fronts, among them nightclubs and KTV bars, quickly go back to business after being raided by the police.
It is an old story really, one that we have heard through generations--only with different casts of characters and with a growing number of children of tender age brazenly and alarmingly being victimized. It is time our national and local officials attended to this problem with greater urgency and resolve. For, indeed, prostitution erodes the moral fiber of society and destroys a person's self-respect and dignity.
Updated 00:55am (Mla time) Nov 20, 2004
Inquirer News Service
Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the November 20, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer
THE INITIAL findings of a recent study conducted by End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes (Ecpat), a nongovernment advocacy group, no longer come as a surprise. They only confirm that prostitution in the Philippines is indeed a worsening problem; and, just like leaving the country to earn a living abroad, it has become a means of survival for thousands and thousands of Filipino families long struggling to at least keep their heads above a deepening poverty.
One finding--although already public knowledge and an accepted fact--especially stands out: the recruiters of sex workers, especially children are "immediate family members [or] people known to family and friends." This speaks volumes not only about how desperate many of our poor have become but also about how poverty has corrupted the moral values of the only predominantly Christian nation in Asia.
Consider this: In the 1990s, there were already between 40,000 and 100,000 child prostitutes in the Philippines. These figures do not include prostitutes above the age of 16. And not all of them were female; a substantial number were very young boys. The Ecpat study says many of them found themselves in Malaysia and Japan. In fact, to be referred to as a "Japayuki," a term referring to Filipina entertainers in Japan, does not exactly invite respect in a community. And if it is any indication as to how serious the problem of prostitution has become, inspirational writer Paulo Coelho has a Filipina prostitute plying her trade between Brazil and Switzerland in one of his best-selling books, "11 Minutes."
Just as it has been known as a leading provider of domestic helpers, Christian Philippines is also fast becoming known as a primary source of prostitutes. Such reputation has brought into our shores not only a steady stream of pedophiles masquerading as foreign tourists; it has also drawn perverts masquerading as foreign investors.
Inquirer columnist Rina Jimenez-David has observed that "cybersex" could be "the fastest-growing segment of the sex industry in the country." Edu Manzano, chair of the Optical Media Board, after raiding a cybersex facility in Angeles, Pampanga, expressed shock upon discovering that "40 percent of all the materials we confiscate now consists of child pornography" and that an increasing number of sex videos are made in the Philippines with Filipino children as "actors." Many, if not most, of the producers of these revolting pornographic materials are said to be foreigners. It is believed that because of the proliferation of these materials, more Filipinos have become pedophiles themselves.
The Ecpat study notes that the recruiters of the sex workers have "indications of guilt but they often justify it by saying they are helping the family [and] helping alleviate poverty in the community." There are also those who want prostitution to be legalized--accepting it as a "fact of life," the oldest profession that mankind has been stuck with "since time immemorial" and cannot do away with till kingdom come--if only "to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases." By the same logic, counter those opposed to the idea, illegal drugs and some crimes should be legalized because we cannot completely stop them.
Is the government really helpless in containing prostitution? It has been pointed out that the Philippines already has one of the most stringent laws against child prostitution, but enforcement of such laws leaves much to be desired. The general perception is that this is so because influential public officials have always been among the most generous patrons of prostitutes (take the case of Keanna Reeves and former Rep. Romeo Jalosjos) if they are not themselves members of prostitution syndicates. Thus prostitution fronts, among them nightclubs and KTV bars, quickly go back to business after being raided by the police.
It is an old story really, one that we have heard through generations--only with different casts of characters and with a growing number of children of tender age brazenly and alarmingly being victimized. It is time our national and local officials attended to this problem with greater urgency and resolve. For, indeed, prostitution erodes the moral fiber of society and destroys a person's self-respect and dignity.
posted by Dante at 12:55 AM
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