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RAPHAEL BLOCH / SIPA

Young people deprived of school and predators confined to their homes by the pandemic.

The situation has sparked a surge in online sexual abuse of children across the world, NGOs and police warn.

Many pedophiles have taken advantage of the restrictions linked to Covid-19 to contact minors, often in developing countries like the Philippines or Indonesia but not only, via social networks, online gaming sites or the dark web.

The saturated dark web

In Australia, federal police received more than 21,000 reports of child sexual abuse - sometimes under the age of one - in the 12 months to the end of June, more than 7,000 more than 'last year.

"Some of these dark web sites crash because they can't cope with the traffic," notes Paula Hudson, investigator for the Australian Federal Police.

Police “directly” attribute this “incredible influx” to the fact that pedophiles and children are spending more time at home, she said, with the closure of schools leaving young people on their own.

"The containments linked to Covid-19 have created an explosive cocktail conducive to an increase in the sexual exploitation of children online", notes in Manila John Tanagho of the NGO International Justice Mission (IJM) which fights sex trafficking.

Children sometimes exploited by their own parents

The Philippine government recorded a 260% jump in reports of content related to child abuse from March to May, a period of strict confinement in the country, Unicef ​​said.

Investigators even "saw specific forums to discuss opportunities that arise during Covid," one of them with more than 1,000 members, notes Paula Hudson.

The exploitation of children follows the demand of pedophiles, says John Tanagho.

And the abuse is often repeated on a regular basis.

In developing countries where families stranded at home have lost jobs and incomes, children are sometimes exploited by their own parents who broadcast live images for predators in rich countries, often with just a smartphone.

“Abuse responds to a command, is paid for and consumed live by criminals all over the world who do not need to leave the comfort of their homes,” he says.

These children are abused for an average of two years before being rescued.

And even if there is outside intervention, the trauma continues.

Mellanie Olano, social worker for the NGO IMJ in the Philippines, has participated in many operations to help these children.

"It's quite chaotic when you arrive in a house where there is abuse, the children all start to cry," she told AFP.

"Parents need to pay extra attention to their children's online activities"

In Indonesia, which has become a breeding ground for child sexual abuse like the Philippines, around 20% of young people say they have seen predatory behavior online, according to a survey by the Ecpat network which fights the sexual exploitation of minors.

"Parents must be even more attentive to the online activities of their children because in a few minutes they can become victims or perpetrators of crimes on the Internet," warns the Indonesian police commissioner Teuku Rasya Khadafi.

Pedophiles also pass through online gaming platforms, notes Glen Hulley, a former Australian police officer who works for the NGO Project Karma.

"What we've seen most often during lockdown are criminals trying to talk to children in apps popular with young people, like gaming platforms with built-in messaging."

They pretend to be young, pretend to be a famous Youtuber or even a star like Justin Bieber.

Children who are exploited do not come only from developing countries.

In early November, Australian police announced that they had arrested 14 men suspected of producing and sharing material showing sexual abuse, and identified 46 victims, including 16 from a single daycare in Australia.

This documented trend in Asia-Pacific holds true in many countries, according to an Interpol report which sounded the alarm in September.

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  • Confinement

  • Society

  • Justice

  • Pedophilia

  • Sexual assault