Members of the Iligan City Justice Zone present the crafted resolution to urge the Department of Education to include responsible internet and social media use in the basic education curriculum. (Photo: ADD/PIA-10/Lanao del Norte)
ILIGAN CITY (PIA) — Iligan City is no longer on the list of areas with the highest cases of Online Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children (OSAEC) in the Philippines, members of the Iligan City Justice Zone (ICJZ) announced in a press conference.
In 2022, Iligan City ranked third nationwide and first in Mindanao for the most number of OSAEC cases.
PLtCol. Michelle Olaivar, chief of the Women and Children Protection Desk, reported that since the establishment of the Task Force OSAEC in Iligan City, 17 rescue operations have been conducted, including 14 entrapment operations and 10 cyber warrant applications. Of the 20 individuals arrested, eight have been convicted, while cases against the others are ongoing.
The removal of Iligan City from the list is attributed to continuous efforts to combat OSAEC and prevent the creation of OSAEC materials.
In addition to the Task Force OSAEC-Iligan, the city is part of the country’s Justice Zones, which include the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), local government units, Philippine National Police, and Department of Justice. Iligan is the 15th Justice Zone in the country.
“There is only one purpose: to assist and help our children through our collective effort using the Justice Zone for anti-OSAEC initiatives in the Iligan City Justice Zone,” Judge Alberto Quinto, lead convenor of ICJZ, said.
Moreover, the ICJZ crafted a resolution to urge the Department of Education to include responsible internet and social media use in basic education curriculum.
Armien Alorro of the ICJZ secretariat shared that initiatives involving barangay officials have been implemented to help address OSAEC cases in the city. Notably, barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan officials participated in a two-day OSAEC Awareness seminar in November last year.
Meanwhile, Councilor Rosevi Queenie Belmonte, chairperson of the Committee on Education and Social Services, emphasized that their efforts to reduce OSAEC cases in the city will continue, along with raising public awareness of its impact.
Moreover, Integrated Bar of the Philippines Lanao del Norte Chapter President Lawyer Rejoice Subejano expressed their commitment to proactively support the campaign against OSAEC and emphasized their participation as part of their corporate social responsibility. (LELA/PIA-10/Lanao del Norte)
