Swedes sentenced to life in prison for Filipino cyber-brothel

[pedro01]

Here's some interesting facts about the sex trade in the UK.

• 75% of women involved in prostitution started as children.

• 74% of women cite poverty as the primary motivator for entering prostitution (Melrose 2002).

• Up to 70% of women in prostitution spent time in care, 45% report sexual abuse and 85% physical abuse within their families (Home Office 2006).

• Up to 95% of women in prostitution are problematic drug users, including around 78% heroin users and rising numbers of crack cocaine addicts (Home Office 2004a).

• More than half of UK women in prostitution have been raped and/or seriously sexually assaulted. At least three quarters have been physically assaulted (Home Office 2004b).

• 68% of women in prostitution meet the criteria for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in the same range as torture victims and combat veterans undergoing treatment (Ramsey et al 1993).

• Four out of five women working in London brothels are thought to beforeign nationals (Dickson 2004).

• The mortality rate for women in prostitution in London suffer is 12 timesthe national average (Home Office 2004a).

• A global study of prostitution found that 9 out of 10 women in prostitution would like to exit if they could (Farley, 2003).

• Ten years ago it was estimated that around 80,000 women were in prostitution in the UK (Kinnell 1999). Many experts believe the number to be far higher now.

Now - consider how much worse those stats are in prostitutes in PI.

Offering women in such a situation a "way out" that involves them spreading their legs in front of a webcam is hardly doing them a favour is it?

It's just preying on the vulnerable.

[kristophon]

this has to be a wind up.. not even the justice system in the phillipines could be this backwards could it?

[manarak]

It's nice to see you backtrack from "youse are all commies" - but your simplistic capitalistic view of the sex trade does not play out in the real world.

The UK has approximately 12 prostitutes per 10,000 people and the PI has 90. By your measure, this would imply that prostitution in the UK pays LESS than an office job in the UK, I think you will find that the pay for prostitution is far HIGHER than office work in the UK, yet a much smaller percentage of girls go that route. This does not gel with your model because your model misses out the fact that the majority of women abhor this sort of work and do it when there's no other option. Of the UK girls that go that route up to 95% have serious drug issues and more than half have been raped/abused.

So even in the UK -most women that enter the flesh trade are making the decision because they have serious issues. Like I say - it's not choice, it is lack of choice.

You paint a picture that there's women just lined up to enter the sex trade if the money is right and that is just not the case.

In the UK it's drugs and in the PI it's poverty. The guys making money from the sex trade in PI are no different from the pimps making money from drug addicted girls in the UK.

No, I didn't backtrack, you simply didn't make that point again. I still think that labeling an "exploiter" someone who pays a fair salary to his employees alone based on the comparison of how much the boss earns vs. the employee is disgusting.

In your economic reasoning about prostitution you confuse cause and consequence - which is common in leftist view of how a market works.

Yes, currently, in the UK, mostly women with "issues" enter the sex trade.

This is a consequence of how the opinion of UK society has been shaped.

Are there brothels in UK? Beer bars?

If there were, I think the numbers would be quite different, and also other women would do that job rather than just those with issues as today.

In comparison, Germany has 49 prostitutes per 10.000 and Thailand has 44....

My point is, in countries like the Philippines and Thailand, the bulk of prostitutes is not made of women with "issues".

It'^s made with poor women looking for a way to earn money.

[curious297]

Take a look at this facebook page. These are the woman that worked at the cam studio in question. Do they look like they were forced to work or signs of human trafficking?

https://www.facebook.com/everybodyneedsfreedom/photos_stream

Here is what they don't tell you.

1. Working as a camgirl in the Philippines is not illegal.
2. Only one of the 20 women stated that she was forced to work which is a total lie.
3. The truth is this one girl as ashamed and lied to her husband what she did for work but she didn't leave. Once he found out, they contacted a TV show called Bitag who then contacted the NBI (National Bureau of Investigation).
4. The police promised her free education and money if she would sign their statement that she was forced to work and stripped naked. Even in court she mentioned that the Swedes were nothing but nice to her.
5. The 2 other women (Shift managers) in Jail as part of the 5 were also offered the same deal but they would not sign the statement as they said it was lies against the 2 Swedes, they had done nothing wrong so the 2 women were sent to jail too.
6. All the girls had rooms a few miles away from the studio where they slept between shifts.
7. All women were over the age of 18. Before they could work, they had to produce evidence of age via a passport or their birth certificate. This was necessary proof required by the external cam companies of which they were models for.
8. At no time whatsoever where any minors working in the studio even though the papers presumed the possibility.
9. All women were free to come and go as they pleased.
10. All rooms where tastefully decorated, had piped music, they had breaks when they wanted and had a fridge for their food and and snacks.
11. Every Friday the women were treated to a night out on the town as shown in the face book pictures.
12. On their days off they would often go to the beach or get their hair done.
13. They were earning as much as 40,000+ pesos per month, as much as a trained doctor.
14. Most were ex bar girls that were often beaten and abused as working prostitutes and were more than happy to be cam girls working in a safe and clean environment.
15. When possible, they would ask to come back month after month as they enjoyed the work.
16. The job allowed them to send good money back home to their family, eat well and buy the clothes they always wanted.
17. How can the two swedes be accused of human trafficking when inside philippines borders?
18. The women made their own way to Cagayan De Oro and at no time were they accompanied to the studio. They were met at CDO airport and taken to their rooms ready to start work as they had already been explained what they should do having been met in their home town or recruited by one of the other cam girls which they were paid commission for their efforts.
19. The 2 Swedes were illegally taken at gunpoint from their hotel to the studio then arrested as the police only had a warrant to arrest them at the cam studio premises.
20. The police falsified the arrest times as it has been proven by the flight manifest that one of the top reporters present at the arrest was already on the plane back to Manilla at the time the police logged the arrest.
21. The crime of Human trafficking takes 5 people otherwise it cannot be human trafficking. Hence the police arrested the 2 Swedes, 2 shift manager woman and one of the worker men to make the case stick.
22. All the other girls were threatened if they did not sign a damaging statement against the 5 arrested, they would also be added as part of the human trafficking crew.
23. The police forcibly placed the women into care. The parents of seventeen of the eighteen girls removed them from the government social services because they were being held there against their will as propaganda for the media to show the women we’re being “taken care of”.
24. Nine of these filed a case against the DSWD (Department of Social Welfare and Development) and the NBI (National Bureau of Investigation) for Habeus Corpus and for forcing them to testifying against the accused under threats of imprisonment with the accused.
25. Three of the defence witnesses were girls who worked in the studio during the raid.
26. The three testified in court that they had been forced by the NBI to sign a complaint and agree to testify against the accused.

Many of the documents that proved their innocence were lost or forgotten at the time of the case thus allowing the police to make any statement they wanted.

Please take a look at the following letter sent to the UN for additional information.

https://www.facebook.com/notes/release-the-five/letter-addressed-to-the-united-nations/302470183160707

Let the facts be known.

[harryfrompattaya]

Good these young guys throught this will make them big money for not working

They should died in Prison

Before they were caught they throught they were big shoots

[harryfrompattaya]

Beware of running any sex orientated business in corrupt 3rd World countries.

You are very wise You are good man giving great advice

[slipperylobster]

As for the Philippines, religeous zealotry often leads to the opposet effect - i.e. the ministers daughter is the local whore, thus the PI is staunchly Catholic and has a brothel in every town.

If religious zealotry leads to prostitution, why do we not see that with Moslems? Besides, I lived in the Philippines 15 years, and although Catholics run the Government and Schools, you will not see alot of zealotry. Most families pray and such, attend church and celebrate religious festivals, but prostitution is not the anti-christian...jerk reaction...knee jerking end result of religion. It has more to do with poverty. In fact, Magdalena is a figure in the Catholic religion who was seen as some as a prostitute (and a follower of Christ). Many poor girls who turn to prostitution out of poverty found comfort in that Jesus defended Magdalena. There is a song in the Philippines called Magdalena...and if you listen well at the Karaoke bars (prostitutes) sing that song often.. its close to their hearts...

[curious297]

Good these young guys throught this will make them big money for not working

They should died in Prison

Before they were caught they throught they were big shoots

Good these young guys throught this will make them big money for not working

They should died in Prison

Before they were caught they throught they were big shoots

Yes, comment from your ivory tower and even though I have furnished you with facts, your ignorance is still apparent. The women backed the accused in court and supplied statements against the NBI which is a rare fact in these cases, even the parents were stopped in their quest to help the accused.

Go to any xxx tube site and type "cam model", there are millions of feeds and movies from countries where this is both legal and illegal. Many of these are home made clips made by women for free and yet these cam women were paid a fair buck, kept safe and given some feeling of self worth considering their already previous dangerous jobs as street walkers.

I guess you are one to say there is no sex trade in Thailand. You can walk less than 50 metres between bars girls offering prostitution how many massage parlours offer you a "Happy ending"? Did you know that you could go to prison by just having a nude picture on your mobile phone?

So better to go drive your car drunk, kill someone in a fatal accident whilst recklessly driving whilst in the meantime, destroying a family and get less than 10 years in jail is acceptable? High society people like police, judges, TV celebrities and high priests getting done for kiddy fiddling, rape, falsifying evidence and killings get less time and not one of the supposed victims came to their defence.

Take note, the act of being a webcam person is NOT a crime in the Philippines, internet is very expensive (unlike in 3rd world countries where women can work safe from home as in the EU or the US). This studio was a safe haven for them not only to work in a clean and safe environment but to have no physical contact and remain anonymous. Keep in mind that most of these women were already working girls getting beaten, raped and mugged for their services. Hearing these womens stories first hand, most of the crimes committed against them were by 1st world tourists who knews better yetyou still believe in what you say?

Women and children are raped and the attacker gets less than 10 years with time off for good behaviour yet these ladies were able to do the only work they know in a safe environment, guaranteed payment from 15,000 - 40,000 peso per month which is more than an educated and fully trained white collar worker, support their family and you judge their choice of work.

Probably better to work a 14 hour day making track shoes they could never afford in a lifetime for $2 per day? So who is the pimp now selling their wares for $500 a pop in high end retail stores?

Remember who you are supporting the next time you go out to by the latest running shoes or fake handbag for your bar girlfriend.

Remember who you are supporting the next time you hire a desperate woman to performs sexual acts for your stag night, the strippers fake smile as you shove $1 bills into her bikini to show just how much of a "Man" you are or the prostitute you bring back to your business trip hotel room because we all know wifey would not approve!

Perhaps if you walked a mile in their shoes you might have a different view but alas, it's people like you that makes the justice system fail with your two tier conscience.

I am sure you are the first to condemn anyone accused of a crime that even though the media make the facts fit, the real facts do not.

Educate yourself: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_miscarriage_of_justice_cases

[slipperylobster]

The point of the story is "Human Trafficking". These guys were using girls from a 3rd world country to make bucks. If Internet Sex is legal ...fine and dandy. These two monkeys just chose one of the worst spots in the world to do their business...hiring young local workers to masturbate in front of foreign customers is indeed "Trafficking". They should have figured out that out, and perhaps they were willing to take their chances....and failed miserably. Morality aside....Western men that utilize young (albeit legal aged) Asian girls to perform sex acts on camera for profit are just asking for jail time. No point in being stupid. Do it in Sweden...not the Philippines. Lesson learned?

[zappalot]

The point of the story is "Human Trafficking". These guys were using girls from a 3rd world country to make bucks. If Internet Sex is legal ...fine and dandy. These two monkeys just chose one of the worst spots in the world to do their business...hiring young local workers to masturbate in front of foreign customers is indeed "Trafficking". They should have figured out that out, and perhaps they were willing to take their chances....and failed miserably. Morality aside....Western men that utilize young (albeit legal aged) Asian girls to perform sex acts on camera for profit are just asking for jail time. No point in being stupid. Do it in Sweden...not the Philippines. Lesson learned?

maybe you should get some information first before making statements who do not fit to this story at all.

[slipperylobster]

The point of the story is "Human Trafficking". These guys were using girls from a 3rd world country to make bucks. If Internet Sex is legal ...fine and dandy. These two monkeys just chose one of the worst spots in the world to do their business...hiring young local workers to masturbate in front of foreign customers is indeed "Trafficking". They should have figured out that out, and perhaps they were willing to take their chances....and failed miserably. Morality aside....Western men that utilize young (albeit legal aged) Asian girls to perform sex acts on camera for profit are just asking for jail time. No point in being stupid. Do it in Sweden...not the Philippines. Lesson learned?

maybe you should get some information first before making statements who do not fit to this story at all

No sense in arguing.......they are in jail. Case closed. Story speaks for itself. My point was wrong country to do their business...and I will stay with that. That being said...this is my last post concerning it.

[curious297]

The point of the story is "Human Trafficking". These guys were using girls from a 3rd world country to make bucks. If Internet Sex is legal ...fine and dandy. These two monkeys just chose one of the worst spots in the world to do their business...hiring young local workers to masturbate in front of foreign customers is indeed "Trafficking". They should have figured out that out, and perhaps they were willing to take their chances....and failed miserably. Morality aside....Western men that utilize young (albeit legal aged) Asian girls to perform sex acts on camera for profit are just asking for jail time. No point in being stupid. Do it in Sweden...not the Philippines. Lesson learned?

Your comment barely justifies a reply other than you need to educate yourself with the facts first before you comment without good reason. You only assume and that makes you look like an ass OK. Who are the monkeys you refer too?

These guys were paid as employees to set up the IT structure in a legal business as proven by the fact they are not in jail for cyber crimes or prostitution but of human trafficking which they had no part of. Perhaps read my original post for the facts as obviously you are not aware of them.

Even the "rescued" women came to the accused defence in court under oath or you would call it mass Stockholm syndrome?

Better to educate yourself with facts before commenting than look like the fool you do.

[jpduggan]

Shouldn't the punishment fit the crime? Many Filipinos work for 100 to 200 pesos a day, roughly 70 to 140 baht. Sounds like these ladies were being well paid for being "naughty" on a web cam. No actual touching and the Sweedes get life?

The Ampatuan Massacre took place November 2009 and as far as I know there have been no convictions.. The Ampatuan Clan allegedly massacred 58 people, 34 were journalists, for challenging the clan's hold on political power in the upcomming 2010 elections.

What a travesty when masacres go unpunished, but two foreigners get life for facilitating encounters between consenting adults...

They should pay the Amputan Clan to have a chat with the girl and her family,money talks, with a view to recanting her story and when they get out never come back.