Cybersex a billion-dollar industry, says Madrigal

SAN FERNANDO CITY, La Union — Foreign syndicates engaged in the cybersex business are earning billions of dollars, according to Sen. Jamby Madrigal who attended last Friday’s arraignment of an American national and his Filipino wife who were arrested for operating a cybersex den here.

"Cybersex is a billion-dollar industry. The Philippines is not gaining (anything) from this illegal activity, (except) those foreign nationals involved in (these) syndicates," she said.

"We want to eradicate this problem and ensure that the predators will go to jail," Madrigal added after coming out of the courtroom when Judge Alpino Florendo ordered the public to temporarily leave his sala for a closed-door meeting with the counsels of both the victims and the accused.

The accused, Clifford Hacket, 40, from Colorado, USA, and his wife, Jaqueline, 24, were present during the arraignment.

The two have been transferred to the La Union provincial jail from the Poro Point police assistance center after they failed to post bail.

Before going to the Regional Trial Court Branch 30, Madrigal, along with Mayor Mary Jane Ortega, first met with the four minors rescued from the cybersex den, at City Hall.

"I am here to help the victims. This is my own crusade against child pornography and cybersex. Syndicates involved in this activity are very rich; they can pressure or buy anyone, particularly public officials and court personnel," she said.

In a statement, the neophyte senator said she believes that the cybersex den (asianbabes.com) raided in Pampanga last October had links with the cybersex business of the Hackets which was busted last Nov. 23.

The Hackets and three of their female employees were arrested during a raid on a rented house where they had been operating the cybersex den.

Seized during the raid were three computers with complete accessories, three Web cameras and speakers, assorted diskettes, pornographic VCDs and CDs, a CD writer, payrolls and the daily time records of the Hackets’ employees.

One of the four rescued minors revealed that they were paid only P50 for working eight hours a day.

She admitted that some of them posed nude and did sexual acts in front of the computer for their foreign customers abroad.

"The existence of an Internet pornographic site in La Union is only an example of what kind of exploitative business is spreading all over the country. The operators of these sites are not only criminals, they are predators," Madrigal said.

"Child Internet pornography is one of the worst forms of child labor. It harms the child both physically and psychologically. It is widespread, organized, systematic, syndicated and transnational in nature. It does not only (require) domestic measures but international arrangements to combat its spread," she added.

Madrigal, who chairs the Senate committee on women and children, said she has filed resolutions calling for a legislative inquiry into the proliferation of child pornography and pedophile materials and the sexual exploitation of minors in the country.