Child porn manufacturing, use skyrockets by 264% in Philippines during coronavirus lockdown

The number of cases recorded during the quarantine from March 1 to May 24 is 279,166.

MANILA, Philippines, May 28, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – The number of cases of online sexual exploitation of children in the Philippines has dramatically increased by more than 250 percent after stay-at-home orders were implemented during the coronavirus pandemic.

“Data from the Department of Justice Office of Cybercrime … revealed the total of cases recorded from March 1 to May 24 reached 279,166 which is 264 percent higher than the cases recorded on the same period of 2019 at 76,561,” reported PTV News. “From the 2020 record, 132,192 were recorded in March, 53,882 in April, and 93,092 in May.”

As pointed out by the Manila Bulletin, “most of the cases include possession, manufacture, and distribution of child pornography; online enticement of children for sexual acts; child sex trafficking; sex tourism involving children; extra-familial child sexual molestation; unsolicited obscene material sent to a child; and misleading words or digital images on the internet.”

The Philippine Department of Justice (DOJ) based its statement on data provided by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).

According to the DOJ, the enormous increase “is attributable to the fact that during the [Enhanced Community Quarantine], strict home quarantine is observed in all households, and internet usage surges as people stay home.”

The DOJ noted that “there is no law in the Philippines that directly defines and penalizes” online sexual exploitation of children.

Even though sexual exploitation is on the rise in the Asian country, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has said earlier this week that there will be no school until a coronavirus vaccine has been found. Without a vaccine, sending children to school “spells disaster,” he claimed.

“For me, vaccine first,” he added. “If the vaccine is already there, then it’s okay. If no one graduates, then so be it.”

“I will not allow the opening of classes where students will be near each other,” Duterte said. “Unless I am sure that they are really safe, it’s useless to be talking about opening of classes.”

The Philippines are the world’s largest known source of online sexual exploitation of children.

“A new study released by the Washington-based International Justice Mission on Thursday said Philippine cases of online child sexual exploitation have increased sharply in recent years with parents agreeing to have their own children victimized for the money,” wrote ABC News.

NPR noted that also in the United States more minors were abused during the stay-at-home orders put in place by state governments.

“By the end of March, with much of the country under lockdown, there was a 22% increase in monthly calls [at the National Sexual Assault Hotline] from people younger than 18, and half of all incoming contacts were from minors.”

“As a result of looking at the information that we had from those sessions, it was clear that the abuse was escalating in both frequency and severity,” Camille Cooper, vice president of the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network, told NPR. “So a lot of the kids that were coming to the hotline were feeling pretty vulnerable and traumatized. And it was a direct result of COVID-19, because they were quarantined with their abuser. The abuser was now abusing them on a daily basis.”

https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/child-porn-manufacturing-use-skyrockets-by-264-in-philippines-during-coronavirus-lockdown

Democratic Rep. Charlie Crist requested a proxy vote over health concerns — then he drove across the state to watch the SpaceX launch

Republicans warned about this

If anyone was looking for a good example of how the House of Representatives' new proxy voting system could be abused, Democratic Rep. Charlie Crist (Fla.) just provided a near perfect one.

What are the details?

Crist, as the new policy dictates, submitted a request for another member to vote on his behalf Wednesday, noting in a letter to the clerk's office that he would be "unable to physically attend proceedings" due to "the ongoing public health emergency."

Then the congressman, who represents Florida's 13th Congressional District based in St. Petersburg on the state's west coast, hopped in his car to drive across the state to the Kennedy Space Center to watch the historic SpaceX launch.

Sadly, the launch ended up being scrubbed for poor weather, meaning Crist wasn't able to watch the launch while bailing on work.

In a tweet Wednesday announcing his planned attendance at the event, Crist made no mention of the fact that his proxy request was made due to the "ongoing health emergency."

In fact, a statement included in the tweet stated: "Given his attendance at the launch, Congressman Crist will be voting by proxy in the House of Representatives this week." (emphasis added)

Republicans warned this would happen

In a statement this week, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) called the new rule "a brazen violation of the Constitution" and "a dereliction of our duty as elected officials."

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) added in a tweet that the rule is "unconstitutional" and said: "Let's face it. You gotta show up for work."

The Daily Wire reported that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) spoke out on the rule during a Senate floor speech last week, blasting Democrats for "playing games with the Constitution so they can continue their never ending spring break well into July."

As of Thursday afternoon, 74 congressional members had submitted requests for proxy voters to the clerk's office.

https://www.theblaze.com/news/charlie-crist-proxy-voting-abuse

The World Health Organization Was Against Quarantines Only Last Year

I recommend to you a document written in saner times, and published by the World Health Organization: “Non-pharmaceutical public health measures for mitigating the risk and impact of epidemic and pandemic influenza.” It came out in 2019. I’ve embedded it below.

When the document says influenza, it is referring to any influenza-like infection which is inclusive of COVID-19; that is, any pandemic virus that happens to come along. In the last 100 years, they give examples of four prior to the current virus.

The point of the report is to examine a series of what are called non-pharmaceutical interventions, which can cover the full range of strategies of disease control, from hand washing to surface cleaning to mask wearing to quarantines to travel restrictions. The document contains both good and regrettable material, both of which are covered below. But the standout points for us today are that the World Health Organization only last year solidly recommended against quarantines even if it is only limited to the exposed and sick.

It never even considered the notion of universally locking down an entire population. In that sense, it is an improvement over current practice, and evidence that governments around the world threw out long-standing law and tradition in a disease panic, shattering human relationships and the global economy.

That said, a major problem with the document is its overly formal approach that seeks to model disease severity and government response.

The pandemic influenza severity assessment (PISA) framework was introduced by WHO in 2017. The severity of an influenza epidemic or pandemic is evaluated and monitored through three specific indicators: transmissibility (referring to incidence), seriousness of disease, and impact on health care system and society. The severity is categorized into five levels: no activity or below seasonal threshold, low, moderate, high or extraordinary. The PISA framework is being tested and improved during seasonal influenza epidemics; the aim is to help public health authorities to monitor and assess the severity of influenza, and to inform appropriate decisions and recommendations on interventions.

Almost everything here rests on the ability to discern and model disease severity in real-time. The trouble is that we have to make the judgement call in the midst of this pandemic. Dr. Fauci in late February wrote that “the overall clinical consequences of Covid-19 may ultimately be more akin to those of a severe seasonal influenza.” By WHO standards, that would qualify as “moderate.”

More

https://www.naturalblaze.com/2020/05/the-world-health-organization-was-against-quarantines-only-last-year.html