Sweetie - Background and psychological impact of webcam child sex tourism in the Philippines
In recent years Terre des Hommes Netherlands observed the steady rise of a new form of child sexual exploitation. One that is enabled and fuelled by rapid technological advances, increasing global connectivity, persisting poverty rates, and growing disparity in the global distribution of resources.
Terre des Hommes Netherlands received alarming signals from collaborating project partners from
the Philippines that new commercial child exploitation trades are evolving and spreading parallel to
rising global Internet access rates and developments in communications technology.
In child prostitution ‘hotspots’, like Cebu City in the Philippines, various forms of commercial child
exploitation shifted from offline to online, making child abuse material more accessible and more
anonymously consumable for a larger number of offenders around the world. Terre des Hommes
Netherlands’ project partners reported a shift in child prostitution from the streets, bars, restaurants and other public places to hidden venues where children are engaged in sexual interactions with foreigners through webcams. Those children are not only exposed to and engaged in activities that are illegal, they also fall under the radars of organizations involved in helping these children.
Furthermore, parents become harder to reach because of the in-house nature of the activities.