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Abuse statistics presented at this week’s Vatican-led summit on protecting children from online pornography make dismal reading.
One in four children experience physical abuse. One in five girls is sexually abused before she reaches the age of 18 and one in 12 boys. One in three children are victims of emotional abuse.
Despite their various science, education, crime fighting and child protection backgrounds, delegates at this week’s international ‘Child Dignity in the Digital World’ summit at Rome agreed on two major points.
One is, there’s not enough information on how pervasive the spread of internet pornography is. The other is that policy changes need a coordinated interdisciplinary international effort to guarantee the protection of children.
We need the data,” Dorothy Rozga, the executive director of ECPAT International says.
As an example, she said governments only caught up in 2012, with the creation of a UK-based global alliance called WePROTECT.
“The church has become increasingly aware of the harm experienced by victims, of their suffering and of the need to listen to them.
Action must be taken to “heal wounds, restore justice, prevent crimes” and establish a culture of “real safeguarding” so children can grow up healthy and safe.
“Fortunately, with regard to the church, this is already happening, in various institutions and regions, even when society in general has not yet developed the necessary awareness. efforts, however, must continue, must be expanded and deepened with clarity and firmness.”
He went on to say it “remains important to understand it ever better and, more than anything, to continue to make our understanding of the phenomenon accessible to all those who promote the protection of the rights of minors.
“Only in this way can we effectively fight the battle to protect minors in our digitalised world.”
Australian Tim Morris, Executive Director for Police Services at Interpol, said globally violence is the eighth-leading cause of death among children.
He also spoke about the proliferation of images in what is known as the “dark net,” which is difficult to police, and which is rife with child abuse activity.
He noted that on these sites the use of crypto-currencies to acquire child abuse material is rising and that the demand for new material is “disconcerting” and said the age of cyber-victims is “quite young.
“Frequently, they’re under eight, and even babies are sexually abused on videos transmitted live.”
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