National Children's Month :P

 2025 National Children's Month: A Unified Call to End OSAEC-CSAEM

The observance of the 2025 National Children's Month (NCM) carries a theme of profound urgency: “OSAEC-CSAEM Wakasan: Kaligtasan at Karapatan ng Bata, Ipaglaban!” which translates to "End Online Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children (OSAEC) and Child Sexual Abuse or Exploitation Materials (CSAEM): Fight for the Safety and Rights of Children!". This powerful mandate acknowledges a harsh reality: the digital world, while a space for learning and connection, has become a primary avenue for exploitation against Filipino children. By spotlighting OSAEC and CSAEM, the theme shifts the nation's focus from traditional forms of abuse to the complex, borderless threats in the cyber realm, underscoring the immediate need for collective, sustained action to defend every child’s dignity and safety in this new frontier.

From a legislative standpoint, the government has established a strong framework to protect children's safety and rights. The passage of Republic Act (RA) No. 11930 (Anti-OSAEC and CSAEM Act) in 2022 represents a landmark commitment. This law modernized legal definitions, strengthened penalties against perpetrators, and mandated responsibilities for technological entities, essentially making the Philippines one of the first countries in the region to have a comprehensive law specifically targeting these online crimes. The law explicitly criminalizes acts like live streaming sexual abuse, grooming, and the production or possession of CSAEM, invalidating the consent of the child victim as a defense. Furthermore, it created the National Coordination Center against OSAEC and CSAEM (NCC OSAEC-CSAEM) under the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT), signaling an institutional approach to prevention, response, and international cooperation.

Despite these significant legislative victories, the challenge lies in robust and unified implementation. My view is that the government has succeeded in creating the "framework of protection," but the country is still fighting the "battle of execution." To truly uphold children’s safety, dignity, and rights, government efforts must continue to focus on three critical areas: Capacity, Coordination, and Prevention. This requires allocating sufficient resources to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for victim rescue and rehabilitation; strengthening the Philippine National Police’s (PNP) cyber patrol capabilities; and empowering local government units, particularly the Councils for the Protection of Children (CPCs), to become functional, frontline protection mechanisms. Protecting children from OSAEC-CSAEM is not just a police or court matter; it requires continuous digital literacy education in schools and homes, empowering parents and children to recognize and report threats. As various agencies, including the Commission on Human Rights (CHR), have stressed, the success of this campaign rests on the shared responsibility of all Filipinos—government, private sector, families, and communities—to ensure no child is left behind in the pursuit of a safe and dignified future.

REFERENCES::

Republic Act No. 11930 (Anti-Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation of Children and Anti-Child Sexual Abuse or Exploitation Materials Act)

Department of Justice (DOJ) / Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT)

Commission on Human Rights (CHR) and Council for the Welfare of people Children (CWC) initiatives on NCM 2025

National Children’s Month Committee. (2025). Celebrating National Children’s Month 1 [Photograph]. Google Drive. https://share.google/zyKzKWVQMi0P9BFwg

National Children’s Month Committee. (2025). Celebrating National Children’s Month 2 [Photograph]. Google Drive. https://share.google/rnzN90n2nS4NpyVzG

Philippine Information Agency (PIA) and local government announcements regarding NCM 2025 activities and RA 11930 enforcement.

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