The Senate has now approved the third and final reading for the proposed Special Protections against Online Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children (Anti-OSAEC) Act on Thursday, May 27.
Senator Risa Hontiveros, the sponsor of said bill, has been adamant to have this passed as it would give teeth for the law to catch offenders.
‘Let’s make sure that there will be no more predators and abusers who will be able to avoid our law,’ stated Hontiveros.
Senate Bill 2209 will amend the Anti-Child Pornography Act and the Anti-Photo and Video Voyeurism Act to punish acts done online as well. Moreover, it provides a detailed list identifying which acts constitute as online sexual abuse of children.
Along with Hontiveros, Sens. Sonny Angara, Nancy Binay, Pia Cayetano, Leila de Lima, Ronald dela Rosa, Franklin Drilon, Sherwin Gatchalian, Richard Gordon, Imee Marcos, Manny Pacquiao, Francis Pangilinan, Grace Poe, Ralph Recto, Ramon Revilla Jr., Joel Villanueva, Cynthia Villar, and Miguel Zubiri are listed as co-authors of the bill.
The vote was 23-0-0 with no senator voting against or abstaining from the vote.
Once the bill is enacted, internet service providers and social media networks are mandated to “notify the Philippine National Police (PNP) or the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) within forty-eight (48) hours from receipt of information that any form of child sexual abuse or exploitation is being committed using its server or facility.”
The bill would also give law enforcement agencies additional capacity to go after Filipino and foreign sexual abusers of children. Thus, it bans the entry of any convicted OSAEC offenders from ever entering the Philippines and would also require the government to establish its own online sex offenders registry.
“And most especially, the Anti-OSAEC Law ensures that protocols when pursuing OSAEC cases are sensitive, careful, and empathetic with the rights and welfare of the child,” Hontiveros added.
The proposed measure will now be submitted to the House of Representatives.