Nobel Prize Nominee Lauded Around the World Deserted by His Own
Published in the Philippines News Service
April 13, 2000
MANILA (PNS) - Known throughout the world for the work combating child sex tourism, Father Shay Cullen, a missionary from Ireland, has been nominated for the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize by the Scottish member of parliament, Nigel Griffiths.
The nominating parliamentarian has recognized the risks and threats endured by the priest and his Filipino helpers in their 26 years of effort to help exploited youth and children. They have persevered against death threats and opposition from local politicians and organized paedophile and sex tour agents. These foreigners, running bars and brothels in Olongapo and Angeles in the Philippines, are hounding and harassing the priest and his Filipino assistants. The numerous false allegations, threats and legal complaints, now 35, are designed to weaken and inhibit the PREDA (People's Recovery, Empowerment and Development Assistance) Foundation's efforts to curb the sex tour business that frequently targets children and provides a lucrative business for them.
One group, led by a German bar operator, is working for the prison release of a convicted Australian paedophile, Victor Keith Fitzgerald. Members of the group have leveled baseless charges against the courageous priest and his band of social workers and child rights advocates. Most of the complaints have been debunked and thrown out before reaching court by incredulous public prosecutors, others are still going through the system. The group has an obnoxious internet website, linked to pornography sites, dedicated to bringing down the work of the Preda Foundation.
Some have encouraged the mayor of Davao to sue the charity for over one million US dollars because of the Preda internet campaign (www.preda.org) calling for a stop to the shooting of street youth in that city last 1999. The mayor felt he was being blamed for the atrocities in the city streets.
A local Bishop, Deogracias Iñiguez of the Diocese of Iba, Zambales, one hour from Olongapo, with 27 priests has weighed into the fray with an affidavit of support for Fitzgerald sentenced to 8 - 17 years for child sexual molestation that occurred six years ago. Preda was responsible for bringing Fitzgerald to justice when he was arrested on board his yacht in Subic Bay with three little children on board.
There are 47 priests in the Diocese in all. No lay person joined the petition. Preda in a letter to the Bishop, denied that they are investigating any of the clergy in connection with rumors of improper behavior involving women and children.
Based on the recently reversed testimonies of the two child witnesses in the Fitzgerald case, who are now prostituted, in a sex club linked to his group of supporters, Bishop Iñiguez claims that Fr. Cullen might have framed up Fitzgerald. The Philippine Court of Appeals has upheld the conviction of Fitzgerald and said such claims against Fr. Cullen and Preda were absurd. The higher court even increased Fitzgerald’s sentence to 14 - 20 years imprisonment. Nevertheless, the Bishop and clergy are still calling for a retrial. In his affidavit, Bishop Iñiguez said Father Cullen and Preda "might have exceeded bounds in influencing the children in their pursuit against paedophiles".
Department of Justice sources say that it is highly unlikely that the Court of Appeals will reverse itself. According to this highly placed source, “if Fitzgerald is acquitted, then the credibility of PREDA could be greatly weakened in any subsequent legal action it might take on behalf of abused children.” He added, “perhaps, this is the desired outcome.” It would be greatly welcomed by anyone who might be involved in improper behavior connected to children and have reason to fear exposure and criminal charges.
Fr. Cullen and the PREDA staff, expressed disappointment to the Bishop in a letter dated last February 22, and pointed out that church leaders are obliged to take a “preferential option for the poor”. Bishop Iñiguez said that victims and convicted paedophiles should be treated equally. Instead, the PREDA Staff has requested assistance from the diocese for the more than 807 child victims with pending complaints seeking justice against their sex abusers. "The church should support their cry for justice", they said.
The work for youth and children began twenty-six years ago. Together with Filipino lay Catholic workers, Mr. and Mrs, Alex and Merle Ramirez-Hermoso, Fr. Cullen established the PREDA Foundation, Inc. The renowned organization, with a small staff of committed Filipinos, is justifiably famous and recognized internationally. Its campaign for children's rights and success in bringing international syndicates exploiting children to the attention of law enforcers has led to the convictions of many paedophiles and child traffickers from the United Kingdom, Norway, the United States and the Philippines. They have succeeded in contributing significantly to international awareness of these horrific crimes against defenseless children. The Preda Foundation is an example of a Non-Government Organization (NGO) that can be small and beautiful for children but very effective against paedophiles and child abusers.
The Nobel prize nomination is one of the first for an organization combating the international sex trade in children. Fr. Cullen was a drafting committee member of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in Helsinki in 1989 that was approved by the United Nations a year later and ratified by almost every nation on earth. He was active in the International Global March in 1998 that helped bring about the Convention Against the Worst Forms of Child Labor. However, his most enduring contribution has been in sucessfully lobbying for extra-territorial laws by which a suspect can be prosecuted in his own country when accused of abusing children abroad.
The PREDA Foundation's social workers, therapists and legal aid workers have been responsible for assisting hundreds of children escape the slavery of prostitution and the suffering of child sexual abuse. Untold numbers of vulnerable children are now safe because of their preventive intervention strategies that include youth organizing, public education and advocacy for children's rights and AIDS prevention.
Besides this, the success of their Fairtrading endeavors has brought livelihood projects to hundreds of villagers throughout the Philippines, bringing prosperity and keeping families together in their villages. The earnings fund development projects and their work for children. International donor agencies contribute generous support.
Fr. Cullen first went to the Philippines in 1969 and was horrified by the sexual exploitation of thousands of young women and minors in the sex industries of Olongapo and Angeles cities, then the home towns of the US Navy and Air Force. The brothels, numbered in their hundreds, operated with city permits and licenses issued by collaborating politicians and operated by the international sex mafia many of them foreigners from the United States, Germany, Australia and the United Kingdom.
"For me, it was a shocking experience to walk the streets of these military towns as an ordinary visitor, and be offered prostituted children as young as eleven or twelve years old", Fr. Cullen said." I was determined to do something about it, so with Merle and Alex, I started the PREDA shelter for the street youth on drugs. Many were in danger of summary execution during the Marcos regime, later we turned to help street children and the sexually exploited", he added.
A successful ten-year campaign by PREDA in Olongapo culminated in a national campaign that succeeded in removing the bases in 1992 and replaced them with a thriving economic zone first proposed by the PREDA Foundation to the Government of Corazon Aquino.
In recent years, international sex tour operators have moved into the area opening bars and brothels, as a result, PREDA has renewed its advocacy work to prevent the worsening of the situation. During a tour of European cities last March, Fr. Cullen, assisted by church organizations such as Missio in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, launched a highly visible campaign called “Guardian Angel". During a day at international airports throughout Europe volunteers invited international tourists to support the campaign and report suspicious activities that might endanger children.
Besides, the PREDA Foundation has proposed to governments and international agencies to help establish an International Court for Children's Rights. In the Philippines, the PREDA Foundation is working with the Judicial Academy of the Philippines and other organizations to introduce Child-friendly Courts that will use video conferencing to protect the child witness from intimidation and harassment.
"The Nobel Prize Nomination is welcome and timely", said Fr. Cullen, "it is only due to the work of the Preda team, they deserve it and all the unsung heroes working for children's rights".
Louis Barker