CWC: ‘No touch, no offense’ mentality a reason for OSAEC underreporting

One of the factors there is an underreporting of online sexual abuse or exploitation of children in the Philippines is that victims are often unaware they are already being abused because they are not being physically touched by their perpetrators, the Council for the Welfare of Children (CWC) said Thursday.

CWC executive director Undersecretary Angelo Tapales said that OSAEC remains to be a “serious concern” in the country, with 41% of the facilitators being the children’s biological parents, and 42% being their other relatives.

However, he pointed out that there is a “no touch, no offense” mentality among some people, thinking that they do not need to report a sexual abuse because the victim was not directly touched. 

He also said that many young boys were also victims of online and offline sexual abuse, but since there is a notion that men should not be crying or complaining that much, many of them opted to just remain silent. 

“‘Yung mga bata, hindi nila alam na sila’y bina-violate. So talagang maaring sabihin natin na may underreporting,” Tapales said in a Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon interview. 

(Children don't know when they are being violated. So we can really say that there is underreporting.) 

“For the CWC, we think the first hurdle in combating OSAEC is really changing that mentality. Hindi po komo no touch ay no offense. Hindi komo-vinideo lang or pinicturan ang bata, ay walang krimen na nangyari,” he added. 

(Just because you were not touched, doesn't mean there’s no offense already. Just because someone only took a video or a photo of you, doesn’t mean there wasn’t a crime that happened.) 

Tapales said there is a need to strengthen the OSAEC awareness campaign in the country for people to know where they should report these kinds of abuses, and for victims to be assured that there are government agencies that are willing to help them. 

President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr. on Wednesday warned perpetrators of OSAEC in the country, as he ordered the creation of a centralized system for detecting and reporting OSAEC cases using technology and specialized cybercrime mechanisms.

“The Philippines is not a safe haven for people who abused and exploit children. This is the absolute worst place for you, and we will make sure you know it,” the President said. 

At least 200 convictions have been made since the Anti-Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation of Children Law was passed in 2022, according to the Department of Justice in April.—AOL, GMA Integrated News