TAGUIG CITY, PHILIPPINES – A woman who created child sexual exploitation materials (CSEM), including live video streams, was sentenced to reclusion perpetua (equivalent to a life sentence) on 15 October 2020. The case stemmed from a referral from the Australian Federal Police who arrested in 2015 a child sex offender in Australia. The Australian offender admitted to viewing CSEM and livestreams of child sexual abuse from the Filipino perpetrator.

This brings to 15 the number of convictions for online sexual exploitation of children during the community quarantine, in cases supported by International Justice Mission (IJM).

Aside from being sentenced to reclusion perpetua, the perpetrator was also ordered to pay a fine of 2 million pesos (approximately A$58,000) and pay each of her three victims 500,000 pesos (A$14,500) in moral damages and 100,000 pesos (A$2,900) in exemplary damages.

Operatives from the Philippine National Police – Anti-Cybercrime Group (PNP-ACG) arrested the perpetrator on 5 May 2016 in Taguig City for sexually abusing three children – a boy aged 13 and two girls aged 11 and 8 – to create CSEM. All children are related to the perpetrator.

IACAT Executive Director Jinky Dedumo had this to say about the conviction: “I’m elated that we’re able to secure another conviction against a perpetrator of online child sexual abuse and exploitation. My hope is that this conviction helps hasten the healing for the three survivors. We can see how government prosecutors are fully committed to this work of delivering justice to all children whose lives have been turned upside down by this horrendous crime.”

Atty. Reynaldo Bicol, Director of IJM Manila, said: “We commend our justice system partners for yet another conviction, this one being the fifteenth during the community quarantine, which sends the clear message that perpetrators of online sexual exploitation of children will not go unpunished. The Philippine Government has now convicted over 100 persons for engaging in this crime, and IJM is committed to supporting prosecution of these cases until justice is served to all victims.”

Note to Editors:

• Reclusion perpetua, a penalty given under the Revised Penal Code, entails imprisonment of at least 20 years and one day to a maximum of 40 years. After 30 years, the person would be eligible for parole unless otherwise specified. It is different from life imprisonment, which does not have a definite duration for imprisonment and is a sentence given under special law.
• IJM is withholding the name of the perpetrator to protect the children’s identities
• The Terminology Guidelines for the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse, also known as the Luxembourg Guidelines, prescribes the use of the term “child sexual abuse material” or “child sexual exploitation material” instead of “child pornography”, except when referencing the name of statute. Sexualised material that depicts or otherwise represents children is a representation, and a form, of child sexual abuse and should not be described as “pornography.”