VZCZCXRO8922
PP RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHML #2350/01 1570824
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 060824Z JUN 06
FM AMEMBASSY MANILA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1317
INFO RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEAHLC/HOMELAND SECURITY CENTER WASHINGTON DC
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MANILA 002350 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL KWMN ELAB KCRM RP
SUBJECT:  Cybersex a growing problem in the Philippines 
 
REF: 05 MANILA 2660 
 
¶1.  (U) This message is Sensitive but Unclassified.  Please 
handle accordingly. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Summary:  The cybersex industry continues to grow 
in the Philippines, spurred on by the increasing 
availability of broadband Internet connectivity, foreign 
demand, and difficulty in prosecuting operators.  According 
to GRP authorities, cybersex operations often employ the 
services of recruiting syndicates to find "workers."  Bills 
related to cybersex are currently under consideration in 
both houses of Congress, which recess on June 9.   Mission 
continues to work closely with Philippine law enforcement to 
prosecute Amcits who commit sex crimes in the Philippines 
and to train prosecutors to build more effective cases 
against traffickers.  End Summary. 
 
----------------- 
A Growing Problem 
----------------- 
 
¶3.  (U) The cybersex industry, where paying customers order 
"performers" to engage in sexual acts in front of web 
cameras, continues to grow in the Philippines.  Clients are 
mostly foreign men who pay by credit card for a live video 
feed involving young females and, in some cases, males, 
including some minors.  According to NGO sources, the 
majority of cybersex customers are located in the U.S., 
Europe, Australia, Japan, and South Korea.  Reliable 
statistics on the number of cybersex dens in the Philippines 
are not available, due to the clandestine nature of the 
operations, but contacts in law enforcement and NGOs 
estimate cybersex to be a multi-million dollar industry that 
has spread throughout the country.  Since 2003, police have 
raided operations in Manila, Quezon City, Angeles City (near 
the former Clark Air Base), Olongapo (near the former Subic 
Bay base), Cebu, Davao, and the beach resorts of Boracay and 
Puerto Galera. 
 
¶4.  (U) Most cybersex businesses are small-scale operations 
consisting of several computers, with a few so-called 
performers often working out of non-descript apartment 
units.  The ability to blend in and the portability of the 
infrastructure make cybersex operations difficult to detect. 
According to officials in the National Bureau of 
Investigation (NBI), Filipino cybersex den operators often 
partner with foreigners because of their access to capital 
and technical know-how.  Authorities have arrested at least 
two Americans and one British national in cybersex raids in 
the last two years. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) According to Susan Pineda, the Director of Ing 
Makababaying Aksyon (IMA) Foundation in Angeles City, 
performers in cybersex operations are mostly females 15-25 
years old, although some are younger and there are 
occasionally males.  Based on her experience at the IMA 
shelter for child victims of trafficking and commercial 
sexual exploitation in Angeles City (which has received USG 
funding in the past), the majority of the so-called "chat 
ladies" say they were lured into the business as a way to 
get out of poverty.  Several girls and young women whom IMA 
rescued said they viewed working in cybersex as a "step up" 
from traditional prostitution because of the anonymity and 
their perception that there was a lower risk of physical 
violence. 
 
------------------------------- 
Links to Trafficking Syndicates 
------------------------------- 
 
¶6.  (U) According to NBI sources in Angeles City, 
many cybersex den owners also run night clubs and are 
involved in prostitution.  They often employ the services of 
recruiting syndicates to find workers for their illicit 
enterprises.  Recruiters seek out the so-called performers 
with promises of quick cash to help support their families. 
Often the jobs are advertised as "data entry" positions. 
Another tactic employed by recruiters is to hold out the 
hope of meeting a wealthy foreign husband online -- a 
prospect seen by some Filipinos as a ticket out of poverty. 
 
¶7.  (U) In a new twist, some club owners are reportedly 
combining cybersex with existing prostitution operations to 
enhance their profitability.  According to Pineda, some 
establishments in Angeles City have set up internet cafes 
where customers can engage in private video chats with young 
women.  When they find a "chat lady" in whom they are 
interested, they arrange a meeting at an assigned location 
 
MANILA 00002350  002 OF 002 
 
 
(usually a local hotel).  The customer pays online by credit 
card and then meets his "chat girl" at the designated place 
and time. 
 
------------------------- 
A Push to Strengthen Laws 
------------------------- 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Officers in both the Philippine National Police 
(PNP) and NBI told poloff they have had difficulty in 
building cases against cybersex operators -- even those that 
exploit minors -- because of the weakness of current laws. 
In late 2005, the Senate Committee on Youth, Women, and 
Family Relations conducted an inquiry into the proliferation 
of child pornography and sexual exploitation of minors.  The 
Committee found gaps in existing laws related to child 
Internet pornography -- particularly a lack of specific 
sanctions on perpetrators of such pornography, failure to 
penalize customers of such materials, and lack of a specific 
definition of child pornography. 
 
¶9.  (SBU) Senator Jamby Madrigal, a child rights activist, 
recently shared with poloff draft legislation to address the 
concerns raised in the Committee's report.  In January 2006, 
Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago filed Senate Bill 2197, the 
"Anti-Child Pornography Act of 2006," penalizing the 
possession, sale, and distribution of child pornography. 
The bill is currently under review by the Senate Committee 
on Public Information.  Key features of the legislation 
include: 
 
-- Making possession of child pornography a crime (currently 
this is not a criminal offense); 
 
-- Establishing penalties for Internet Service Providers 
(ISPs) that fail to notify law enforcement upon learning 
that a web site containing child pornography exists on its 
server; and, 
 
-- Providing rehabilitation to victims of child pornography 
and legal assistance in filing complaints against 
pornographers.  These programs would be funded by earnings 
from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office and the 
Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR). 
 
¶10.  (U) At least three bills concerning cybersex and child 
pornography are also pending in the House of 
Representatives.  However, both houses of Congress will 
recess on June 9. 
 
-------------- 
USG Assistance 
-------------- 
 
¶11.  (U) Mission continues to work closely with Philippine 
law enforcement to prosecute Amcits who commit sex crimes in 
the Philippines.  To date, the GRP has cooperated with US 
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on over 30 cases 
of Amcits involved in cybersex or child pornography.  The 
suspects face possible charges in the U.S. under the Protect 
Act and child pornography laws.  High-level officials in the 
PNP and NBI have been very cooperative with ICE 
prosecutions, including sending officials to testify in U.S. 
courts.  In addition, Mission continues to train prosecutors 
to pursue cases more effectively under USAID's Rule of Law 
Effectiveness (ROLE) program.  To date, the program has 
trained about 100 prosecutors throughout the country. 
 
Visit Embassy Manila's Classified SIPRNET website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eap/manila/index. cfm 
 
You can also access this site through the State Department's 
Classified SIPRNET website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/ 
KENNEY