Safer Internet Day: Stopping sexual predators using the Internet to solicit children
“We must ask ourselves whether we are doing enough to protect children on the Internet. Child pornography and grooming of children for sexual purposes are crimes that can be prevented and have to be prosecuted. I call upon the internet community to join our "one in five campaign" and work together to put a stop to sexual violence against children including through intensive awareness raising efforts", said Maud de Boer-Buquicchio, Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe, to mark Safer Internet Day on 8 February.
Sexual violence happens much more often than people. One child in five in Europe is thought to be a victim of sexual violence. In 70 to 85% of cases, children know their aggressors. In 90% of cases, sexual offences are not reported to the authorities. In recent years it has been reported that the Internet is being used more and more by adults who wish to contact children and sexually abuse them, and that online child pornography is also growing. The Council of Europe campaign aims to raise awareness among children, parents, teachers and other people in contact with children about the scale of the problem and to provide them with the knowledge they need to prevent sexual abuse and to report it.
The measures promoted by the campaign are contained in a recent Council of Europe Convention on the protection of children from sexual exploitation and sexual abuse. States signing up to this Convention commit themselves to criminalising the actions of adults who use the Internet in order to arrange a meeting and engage in sexual activity with a child (Article 23 of the Convention). The convention also criminalises all actions linked to child pornography, including the fact of knowingly accessing to on-line child pornography.
The campaign’s main objective is to obtain its ratification and effective implementation by Council of Europe member states and by those non member states which decide to accede to the convention.
Given the difficulties many countries face in tackling the issue of sexual abuse perpetrated by people who children trust (within the home, in foster care, at school or in the context of extracurricular activities), the campaign will focus on this particular challenge.
The campaign sets a simple rule, called the “Underwear Rule”. This rule encourages parents, teachers and carers of children to teach children aged 4 to 7 their right to set limits, to express their feelings, to speak up, to understand that there are bad secrets and good secrets. The rule is explained in a TV spot, a children’s book, a website and other support materials featuring a character called Kiko.
Links:
COUNCIL OF EUROPE Safer Internet Day Supporter 
