Editorial - Wanton exploitation of children

The photo above, and many others like it splashed all over the country's newspapers last September 29, amply reinforces, if not outrightly proves, the long-held suspicion that cause-oriented groups not only make their own rules, but frequently bend them to suit whatever purpose catches their fancy at a given moment.

As the photo clearly suggests, these innocent and very young children are being exploited to promote an anti-pornography campaign, a cause that, while admittedly noble, can potentially harm them later because of their unnecessary exposure to it.

The high-profile campaign, which included having these small kids stomp on thousands of confiscated pornographic material, was amply covered by the media as a matter of course. Consequently, in deference to human nature, the parents of these kids will keep mementoes of the event, such as pictures or video footages.

Maybe these kids do not know what they have been made to do. But when they start to grow older and see the mementoes that their parents kept, they will begin to ask questions, including the very one we dread the most they will ask - what is pornography?

And because their parents will certainly not give them any straight answers, they will begin to seek the answers from their peers. Consequently, they will be introduced into pornography much earlier than if their parents had not allowed them to be exploited early on, in an event that was more on hype than any realistic solution to the problem.

For you do not solve pornography by confiscating pornographic materials and parading innocent children before the cameras. You solve pornography by reintroducing moral values into society, values that call for silent sacrifice instead of noisy hype that only serve to promote cause-oriented groups for the benefit of their financiers.

These same cause-oriented groups count among their causes the exploitation of children. But look what they are doing. They are the very ones exploiting children, knowing fully well that any documentation that has children in it is certain to tug at the heartstrings, and perchance open up the purse strings.

What a lamentable and repugnant way to promote a good cause. And what is alarming is that this is not the only cause where children are being exploited. Even in political rallies, young children are exposed to the risk of bodily harm. There is no guarantee a rally will remain peaceful. Those who use kids in them are guilty of reckless imprudence.