MANILA, Philippines – Activate Sagip Batang Manggagawa Quick Action Teams vs. cyber child pornography, Baldoz orders DOLE regions
Labor and Employment Secretary Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz yesterday directed all DOLE regional directors to intensify monitoring of cyber child pornography in their regions and to be ready to mobilize their respective Sagip Batang Manggagawa Quick Action Teams, or SBMQAT, at the first sign of the menace, and rescue children who are its victims.
“Cyber child pornography is a form of hazardous child labor. Children should always be under a safe, protective, and caring environment. Sometimes, parents themselves are usually the ones who put their children to work in this kind of hazardous environment. If parents or guardians fail to protect their children, then, the DOLE needs to step in and intervene for these minors,” said Baldoz.
Baldoz clarified that the government is there to ensure that children are free from all forms of abuse, neglect, exploitation, and discrimination, or any condition detrimental to their development.
Launched in 1993, the Sagip Batang Manggagawa is a DOLE advocacy program, part of the national strategy to reduce the number of child workers, especially those in hazardous work. It involves the creation of inter-agency Quick Action Teams that respond to cases against child laborers in extremely hopeless conditions. The teams’ tasks are to detect, monitor, and take action against incidence of the most hazardous forms of child labor, of which cyber child pornography is one.
Over the years, the Sagip Batang Mangagawa has responded to cases of child labor in extremely abject conditions, such as bonded/slave labor, commercial sexual exploitation, trafficking for illegal employment, and hazardous work and activities.
She explained that the efforts of the SBMQAT do not end at rescue and closure operations. As part of the inter-agency effort, the DSWD provides aftercare assistance to rescued minors, while the Department of Justice is responsible for filing and prosecuting criminal charges. The DOLE handles administrative cases and leads the teams, working with the DSWD, National Bureau of Investigation, Philippine National Police, local government units, and non-government organizations in raids of suspected child labor lairs.
The DOLE also provides parents of rescued minors with livelihood assistance and skills training so they can start earning for their family.
