Championing Youth Leadership to sustain Anti-Trafficking efforts
- Arise
- Jan 13
- 3 min read
Each year on 11 January, National Human Trafficking Awareness Day prompts reflection on the scale and persistence of modern slavery. For Arise, this day is not about restating familiar statistics. It is about recognising a consistent gap between awareness and action, particularly in what happens after rescue.
A 2022 UNICEF-related national study described the Philippines as an emerging “global centre of Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation of Children (OSAEC),” with nearly half of Filipino children being vulnerable to online sexual abuse. According to the Exodus Road Report, perpetrators are very often parents or close relatives who coerce children into online sexual exploitation, while the majority of consumers of this child sexual abuse material are based in the United States, Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom.
Here is the story of a young man who began confronting this growing harm through his engagement with the Youth for Safety (Y4S) project. Led by the Philippines National Children’s Ministries, a network that Arise has been working with since 2021, young people like Joshua take the lead in community organising, strengthening local child protection mechanisms and ensuring that their peers are equipped with knowledge to stay safe online.
Joshua’s Story
From a young age, Joshua (name changed) carried responsibilities beyond his years. With his mother working overseas and his father earning a living as a jeepney driver, Joshua became the primary caregiver for his younger siblings at a young age.
Joshua is also a survivor of child sexual harassment by a neighbour. When he came across the Y4S project through his local chapter in Quezon City, his experience deeply motivated him to take action in protecting other children from similar harm. This conviction led him into youth leadership, including active involvement with Children International’s Youth Council, where he embraced the principle, “Mula sa bata, para sa bata” [from a child, for a child]. The phrase reflects a belief that children and young people should play an active role in shaping and leading initiatives designed to protect their own rights and wellbeing.
From Youth Leader to Community Advocate
Joshua’s experience in leading young people to act against Online Sexual Exploitation through the Y4S project helped him later enter public service as an SK Kagawad in his Barangay (local government youth council representative). For Joshua, this work was not abstract or theoretical. It reflected the realities facing children during and after the pandemic.
He played a central role in introducing OSAEC awareness within his community. Joshua coordinated directly with barangay officials, personally facilitated documentation processes of case referrals, and contributed to the development of a a Memorandum of Understanding between the local governemt and the Philippine Children’s Ministries Network. These steps helped formalise local commitments and resources to online safety and child protection.
Through his engagement with local frontline groups like PCMN, Joshua further strengthened his capacity to facilitate awareness sessions, engage with schools and collaborate with the Barangay Council for the Protection of Children. His work supported schools in requesting OSAEC awareness sessions, helping ensure that prevention efforts reached more young people.
Why This Story Matters
Joshua’s journey illustrates how lived experience can inform leadership and how youth-led action plays a critical role in community responses to online child sexual abuse. His work reflects a grounded, local effort to translate awareness into practical protection for children.
