Ian Scott Public Interest Internship Program - Osgoode Hall Law ...

James Yap, Osgoode Hall Law School, Class 2010
Recipient of funding through the Ian Scott Public Internship Program
Report: Prosecution of Child Prostitution Offenders and United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees
Before coming to law school, I worked for two years as a field consultant at a software
company. I was sent to work with clients all over Canada and the US, and on one occasion I was
sent to the Philippines. It was an incredible experience and I enjoyed it immensely – but at the
same time, I saw a lot of things that disturbed me. I was disturbed by the poverty and by the
pollution. I thought to myself that one day, I would like to return and work on some of the issues
that touched me deeply while I was there.
One of the things that particularly disturbed me while I was there was the problem of
child prostitution. So this summer, with the help of the Ian Scott Fellowship, I was able to travel
to the Philippines to provide legal support to a child protection agency. As early as the fall of first
year, seeing in the next summer a perfect opportunity to make good on my previous resolution, I
set out to put together my own public interest summer project in the Philippines. I made a
contact through a friend who referred me to the agency, and I made all the arrangements with
them myself.
My work there involved assisting in prosecutions of child prostitution offenders (private
prosecutors being allowed in the Philippines, the agency has a lawyer on staff who prosecutes
cases on behalf of victims), as well as helping to prepare draft national legislation on child
pornography – looking at existing foreign and international legislation on child pornography
worldwide and adapting it to a local context. I particularly cherished the opportunities I had to
work directly with the girls at the shelter. Initially I thought this aspect of the work would be a little
sad and sobering, but I did not realize what a refreshing and uplifting experience it would be to
bear witness to the resilience of the human spirit. I truly learned a lot. I got the opportunity to go
to court several times, and although I cannot venture much into the details of the cases,
because of the sensitive nature of the topic, I did take a picture outside one of the courtrooms.
However, this was not the only project I got involved with this summer. With the other half
of the summer, I went to Malaysia where I volunteered at the UNHCR (United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees). Perhaps as a result of my own immigrant background, I have
always taken a keen interest in the circumstances surrounding the patterns of international
movement and relocation of people. Working at UNHCR was another amazing experience as I
worked closely with refugees on a daily basis and heard some incredible and humbling stories. I
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