MANILA, Philippines?The Optical Media Board (OMB) and the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) have joined forces to fight the proliferation of pornographic materials involving children.

Citing Republic Act 7610, the OMB earlier filed criminal cases against establishments allowing the sale of child pornographic materials, OMB chair Edu Manzano said on Monday.

The move led to an agreement among these establishments to police their own ranks and block the sale of prohibited materials.

According to R.A. 7610, ?establishments that promote or facilitate child prostitution ? shall immediately be closed, and their licenses to operate cancelled.?

Plus, an ?off limits? sign shall be displayed outside the establishment for a period of not less than one year.

Porn in buses

Manzano also said there are confirmed reports of pornographic materials being shown in public buses.

The MTRCB is seeking a dialogue with bus owners, since public showing of videos falls under its jurisdiction, said chair Marissa Laguardia.

According to Presidential Decree 1986, it is the responsibility of the MTRCB to inspect all public exhibitions in movie houses, theaters and other public establishments, seize articles containing unapproved materials and file charges against guilty parties.

The two agencies have also teamed up to combat flicker piracy, or unauthorized use of camcorders inside cinemas.

To ensure that no recording equipment are used inside movie houses, MTRCB agents are continuously making rounds of theaters, including those in Bacolod, Cebu and Davao, Laguardia said.

?Just to show you how serious our fight against piracy is, no less than chair Laguardia herself joined the enforcement operation last Friday,? said lawyer and MTRCB board member Eric Mallonga, also founder of the Child Justice League. ?Board officials are also going the extra mile, making themselves visible for this cause,? he added.

No recording equipment was found during the Friday raid, Laguardia said.

The two agencies have likewise asked the support of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) in educating the public about these problems. ?We began working on this by educating our educators. One specific action is that the Good Shepherd nuns are now teaching educators to help their students in using the Internet properly,? CBCP spokesman Monsignor Pedro Quitorio said.

Email mcruz@inquirer.com.ph