Cybersex a growing problem in the Philippines

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MANILA 002350 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL KWMN ELAB KCRM RP SUBJECT: Cybersex a growing problem in the Philippines REF: 05 MANILA 2660 ¶1. (U) This message is Sensitive but Unclassified. Please handle accordingly. ¶2. (SBU) Summary: The cybersex industry continues to grow in the Philippines, spurred on by the increasing availability of broadband Internet connectivity, foreign demand, and difficulty in prosecuting operators. According to GRP authorities, cybersex operations often employ the services of recruiting syndicates to find "workers." Bills related to cybersex are currently under consideration in both houses of Congress, which recess on June 9. Mission continues to work closely with Philippine law enforcement to prosecute Amcits who commit sex crimes in the Philippines and to train prosecutors to build more effective cases against traffickers. End Summary. -------------- A Growing Problem -------------- ¶3. (U) The cybersex industry, where paying customers order "performers" to engage in sexual acts in front of web cameras, continues to grow in the Philippines. Clients are mostly foreign men who pay by credit card for a live video feed involving young females and, in some cases, males, including some minors. According to NGO sources, the majority of cybersex customers are located in the U.S., Europe, Australia, Japan, and South Korea. Reliable statistics on the number of cybersex dens in the Philippines are not available, due to the clandestine nature of the operations, but contacts in law enforcement and NGOs estimate cybersex to be a multi-million dollar industry that has spread throughout the country. Since 2003, police have raided operations in Manila, Quezon City, Angeles City (near the former Clark Air Base),Olongapo (near the former Subic Bay base),Cebu, Davao, and the beach resorts of Boracay and Puerto Galera. ¶4. (U) Most cybersex businesses are small-scale operations consisting of several computers, with a few so-called performers often working out of non-descript apartment units. The ability to blend in and the portability of the infrastructure make cybersex operations difficult to detect. According to officials in the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI),Filipino cybersex den operators often partner with foreigners because of their access to capital and technical know-how. Authorities have arrested at least two Americans and one British national in cybersex raids in the last two years. ¶5. (SBU) According to Susan Pineda, the Director of Ing Makababaying Aksyon (IMA) Foundation in Angeles City, performers in cybersex operations are mostly females 15-25 years old, although some are younger and there are occasionally males. Based on her experience at the IMA shelter for child victims of trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation in Angeles City (which has received USG funding in the past),the majority of the so-called "chat ladies" say they were lured into the business as a way to get out of poverty. Several girls and young women whom IMA rescued said they viewed working in cybersex as a "step up" from traditional prostitution because of the anonymity and their perception that there was a lower risk of physical violence. -------------- Links to Trafficking Syndicates -------------- ¶6. (U) According to NBI sources in Angeles City, many cybersex den owners also run night clubs and are involved in prostitution. They often employ the services of recruiting syndicates to find workers for their illicit enterprises. Recruiters seek out the so-called performers with promises of quick cash to help support their families. Often the jobs are advertised as "data entry" positions. Another tactic employed by recruiters is to hold out the hope of meeting a wealthy foreign husband online -- a prospect seen by some Filipinos as a ticket out of poverty. ¶7. (U) In a new twist, some club owners are reportedly combining cybersex with existing prostitution operations to enhance their profitability. According to Pineda, some establishments in Angeles City have set up internet cafes where customers can engage in private video chats with young women. When they find a "chat lady" in whom they are interested, they arrange a meeting at an assigned location MANILA 00002350 002 OF 002 (usually a local hotel). The customer pays online by credit card and then meets his "chat girl" at the designated place and time. -------------- A Push to Strengthen Laws -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Officers in both the Philippine National Police (PNP) and NBI told poloff they have had difficulty in building cases against cybersex operators -- even those that exploit minors -- because of the weakness of current laws. In late 2005, the Senate Committee on Youth, Women, and Family Relations conducted an inquiry into the proliferation of child pornography and sexual exploitation of minors. The Committee found gaps in existing laws related to child Internet pornography -- particularly a lack of specific sanctions on perpetrators of such pornography, failure to penalize customers of such materials, and lack of a specific definition of child pornography. ¶9. (SBU) Senator Jamby Madrigal, a child rights activist, recently shared with poloff draft legislation to address the concerns raised in the Committee's report. In January 2006, Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago filed Senate Bill 2197, the "Anti-Child Pornography Act of 2006," penalizing the possession, sale, and distribution of child pornography. The bill is currently under review by the Senate Committee on Public Information. Key features of the legislation include: -- Making possession of child pornography a crime (currently this is not a criminal offense); -- Establishing penalties for Internet Service Providers (ISPs) that fail to notify law enforcement upon learning that a web site containing child pornography exists on its server; and, -- Providing rehabilitation to victims of child pornography and legal assistance in filing complaints against pornographers. These programs would be funded by earnings from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR). ¶10. (U) At least three bills concerning cybersex and child pornography are also pending in the House of Representatives. However, both houses of Congress will recess on June 9. -------------- USG Assistance -------------- ¶11. (U) Mission continues to work closely with Philippine law enforcement to prosecute Amcits who commit sex crimes in the Philippines. To date, the GRP has cooperated with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on over 30 cases of Amcits involved in cybersex or child pornography. The suspects face possible charges in the U.S. under the Protect Act and child pornography laws. High-level officials in the PNP and NBI have been very cooperative with ICE prosecutions, including sending officials to testify in U.S. courts. In addition, Mission continues to train prosecutors to pursue cases more effectively under USAID's Rule of Law Effectiveness (ROLE) program. To date, the program has trained about 100 prosecutors throughout the country. Visit Embassy Manila's Classified SIPRNET website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eap/manila/index. cfm You can also access this site through the State Department's Classified SIPRNET website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/ KENNEY