Editorial: Informative or empty

THE latest sex scandal to fascinate Cebuanos has prompted some groups and government entities to offer insights and issue statements that can be either informative or empty.

The one offered by an official of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP)-Cebu City chapter was informative. Lawyer Earl Bonachita talked about the law that can be used against the person who uploaded the sex video in the internet.

The law is Republic Act 9995 or the Anti-Photo and Video Voyeurism Act of 2009. It prohibits any person from:

--taking photo or video coverage of a person or group of persons performing a sexual act or any similar activity;

--capturing an image of the private area of a person/s such as the naked or undergarment clad genitals, pubic area, buttocks or female breast without the proper consent of the person/s involved and under circumstances in which the person/s has/have a reasonable expectation of privacy.

The law was passed in 2009 precisely to prevent the proliferation of sex video scandals, the most controversial case at that time being the one involving Hayden Kho and actresses Katrina Halili and Maricar Reyes.

But the problem was, and will be, the implementation of RA 9995 and related laws. Which brings us to the “empty” part.

The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) 7, for example, has asked the girl in the sex video to file a complaint against those who uploaded the video on the internet.

"Kun ang victim muduol sa ato ug magpatabang, kung mangayo siya og hustisya sa gibuhat na kadaot sa iyang pagkatawo and as a woman, the CIDG will be more than willing to help her," CIDG 7 Director Eddie Benigay was quoted as saying by a local paper.

While the CIDG intention is laudable, we also know the difficulty in going after the culprits. Law enforcers are ill-equipped as far as equipment and personnel know-how are concerned. Even in such a high-profile case as the one involving Kho, Halili and Reyes, the person who uploaded the sex videos has remained a mystery.

Laws can only deter the commission of crimes if law enforcers are able to identify and arrest the perpetrators. Until law enforcers are able to show proof of their capability in this regard, uploaders of sex videos for commercial or other reasons won’t be deterred.