A Filipino cruise ship worker, Romeo Samonte, lost his job after U.S. authorities classified a video of him kissing his three-year-old son as child pornography. The incident occurred while he was returning to work on the M/V Vision of the Sea after attending his mother’s funeral. Upon arrival at the airport, he was stopped and accused of possessing inappropriate material.
During a Senate committee hearing, Samonte explained that the video was a personal moment shared with his son. He insisted he had never exploited or shared the video, questioning how such a harmless act could be deemed illegal. To prove his innocence, he offered access to his email and social media accounts, but his cellphone was confiscated for a month, during which the video was deleted.
Now unemployed, Samonte has resorted to driving a taxi to support his family but hopes to return to his original job, even in a lesser capacity. The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) noted that many Filipino seafarers deported for similar accusations were not randomly targeted, as U.S. Customs and Border Protection had specific names when boarding ships.
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