Speech of Hon. Ambassador David Hartman of Canada during the 49th Anniversary Celebration of Preda Foundation, Inc.

Hon. Ambassador David Hartman, Canada – Good morning everyone, Bonjour, Magandang Umaga,

I’d like to begin today by extending a sincere thank you to our partners at the PREDA Foundation for organizing today’s important event, and I hope you’ll all join me this morning in extending a round of applause for their 49 years of serving and protecting Filipino children.

I would also like to thank the many esteemed guests and partners who have joined us here today: Governor Hermogenes Ebdane of Zambales Province; Other members of the local and provincial governments; His Excellency Ambassador William Carlos of Ireland, and representatives from other embassy partners; Representatives from the Philippine Government, including the department of Social Welfare and Development, the Department of Education, the Philippine National Police and National Bureau of Investigation, and the Department of the Interior and Local Government; Members of the judiciary and prosecutors offices; As well as other members of civil society and the media.

I would also like to acknowledge the presence of a member of our Canadian embassy team who is here with us today – Mr. Yany Marchand-Vigneault of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Yany has a specific and focussed mandate at our Embassy to work in close cooperation with the Philippine National Police, the National Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Justice to address the criminal abuse and exploitation of children here in the Philippines.

Ladies and gentlemen, it is reassuring to witness such a broad gathering of stakeholders here this morning who are united in the common purpose of protecting children.

Together, it is my hope that we will continue to form an essential ecosystem of support around the young people here in Zambales province, and across all of the Philippines.

As our societies recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, we are beginning to better understand the particular impacts that the last three years has had on our children and youth.

For many vulnerable young people, they did not just lose access to schools, but they also lost access to safe spaces, to essential creative and physical outlets such as sports and outdoors activities, and they lost access to the trusted adults in their schools and communities who they could turn to for help and advice in their time of need.

The world of our children – including the majority of their social connections and experiences – moved online, while the loss of economic opportunities turned many of their families to desperation, increasing the vulnerability of their children to predators from around the world.

Sadly, as our front-line healthcare workers worked diligently to battle the COVID-19 pandemic on the global stage, we now understand that another pandemic of online abuse was spreading around the world away from the spotlight.

The breadth and scope of this online abuse is staggering. For example, here in the Philippines, a 2022 study from UNICEF found that one in five children in the Philippines between the ages of 12 and 17 experienced online abuse in 2021 alone.

In addition, the number of cyber tips reporting the circulation of material depicting online abuse of children increased from 400,000 tips received in 2019 to 2.8 million tips received in 2021.

Similar to the COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic of online sexual abuse knows no geographic boundaries.

It is essential to emphasize that the phenomenon of online sexual abuse is not only a Philippine problem, but tragically, it is a global problem, and one that requires robust international cooperation. And let me be clear, Canada is committed to being part of the solution.

Indeed, we all have a duty to do more to combat online child sexual exploitation and abuse.

Finding a solution will require a whole of society approach to reduce vulnerabilities, stopping the perpetrators and to support survivors with healing, rehabilitation and access to justice.

Around the world, governments at all levels must ensure that we support education, research and innovation, including from civil society, and that we have appropriate legislative frameworks in place in order to ensure that law enforcement officials have the resources they need to interdict and halt the abuses and crimes and prosecute the perpetrators.

Industry and technology companies in the private sector–particularly social media companies, must also play a central role in ensuring that children are protected, and we need to include these private sector stakeholders in addressing this global problem.

Canada and the international community recognize that the Philippines has taken great strides in many of these areas.

In the Human Rights Council Universal Periodic Review of the Philippines held in November 2022, Canada welcomed the Philippines’ adoption of legislation ending child marriage, raising the age of consent, and combatting the online sexual abuse and exploitation of children (OSAEC).

The Anti-Online Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children law in this country positions the Philippines as one of the first countries in East Asia and the broader Indo-Pacific region to have an institutionalized and collaborative approach to prevention and response against online sexual abuse and exploitation of children.

Let me be clear, these are major steps. Now, however, we must turn our attention to the implementation and enforcement of these new laws and initiatives.

Canada will continue to work closely with the Philippines to combat online child sexual exploitation. This includes not only collaboration on addressing threats, but also the sharing of best practices and lessons learned in combatting this horrific crime. We see the Philippines as close and vital partners in this essential work.

In closing, since my arrival in the Philippines a few short months ago, one of the things I have been deeply struck by in this beautiful country is your culture’s deep love and affection for family and for your children. In this light, let us all pledge today to continue our collective efforts to protect our children.

I would also like to offer my sincere appreciation to Preda and all of you here who have dedicated your lives and careers to protecting children, rescuing them, helping them to find safe haven from situations of abuse, supporting them with expert care along their path to healing, and helping them to seek justice and find hope for their futures.

While my heart breaks for the stories I have heard, I am nonetheless encouraged by the incredible courage and hope of the girls and boys at the Preda Foundation shelter.

Children are the most precious resource that we have been entrusted with for the short while we are here on this earth; not only as parents, or families, but also as societies, countries, and as a global community.

Each child deserves to be raised in an environment that is free of violence, discrimination, and exploitation; to grow up with proper nutrition, health care, and access to a good education; and to have a voice in matters that affect them, and a real and fair chance to succeed.

The lives of our children represent the future of our nations and our world. And our children deserve the utmost efforts from all of us to create an environment that is safe for them to thrive and to achieve their dreams.

Thank you, Merci, Maraming Salamat Po.