BAKAS NI EPSTEIN SA PILIPINAS, HAHANAPIN NG SENADO – Legarda

Ni Ernie Reyes

Isang resolusyon ang nakatakdang ihain sa Senado upang paimbestigahan kung may naiwan na bakas o footprint si convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein sa Pilipinas na nambibiktima  ng kabataan.

Sa pahayag, sinabi ni Senador Loren Legarda na kailangan matuklasan kung may nakabakat na bakas ni Epstein sa Pilipinas tulad ng organisasyon, sindikato o public relation companies na kumikilos upang linisin ang pisikal at digital image ng kriminal.

 “This is very recent. It’s right here at our doorstep. I don’t know whether it was him personally or his associates, but this convicted pedophile—who was supposedly a financial wizard at the time and who died or was killed—had a network in the Philippines,” ayon kay Legarda.

“I will file the resolution to look into Epstein’s footprint in the Philippines, the organizations and syndicates that worked with him, as well as the PR companies that helped cleanse his physical and digital image in the Philippines, based on the reports I have read,” giit niya.

Ayon kay Legarda, pagkatapos na maihain ang resolusyon, uungkatin ng nila sa   Department of Justice,   National Bureau of Investigation, o sa Senate Committee on Women na imbestigahan ang reports.

Isingawa ng senadora ang pananaw sa kanyang manipestasyon bilang suporta kay Senador Risa Hontiveros at Sen. Pia Cayetano sa pagsusulong ng  Senate Bill No. 1819 sa ilalim ng Committee Report No. 27, o ang Act Strengthening the Policies on Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation of Children (OSAEC) and Child Sexual Abuse or Exploitation Materials (CSAEM).

Sa kanyang   sponsorship speech, sinabi ni Hontiveros na tinutugunan ng panukala ang pinaka-brutal na krimen ng kasalukuyang panahon – isa ang nagtatago sa likod ng screen pero dinudurog ang tunay na batang Filipino.

“With each passing day, Filipino children are being turned into commodities—bought, sold, and repeatedly abused, not in dark alleyways but within online platforms that reach the entire world,” ani Hontiveros.

Dulot ng patuloy  na nagkakaroon ng sexual extortion, sinabi ni Hontiveros na tinutugunan ng panukala ang reyalidad nang taas-noo at ibinandila ang mga sumusunod:

First, expand definitions to match today’s technology. Child Sexual Abuse or Exploitation Materials will now include computer-generated, digitally altered, or synthesized content.

Second, sexual extortion will be clearly and explicitly criminalized.

Third, increase the responsibility of the private sector, as the digital ecosystem is where these crimes thrive. Internet intermediaries are no longer passive conduits.

Fourth, strengthen cooperation, both domestically and internationally.

Finally, transform the offenders registry into the Philippine Child Sex Offenders Registry.