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Create a safe space: Protecting children from sexual abuse online 

30 Sep 2021

By PEaCE-ECPAT Sri Lanka  The year 2020 changed our lives in a way unimaginable, and in every aspect possible, entrapping us not only behind masks and in the confines of the four walls of our homes, but also the infinite universe of cyberspace. And like a factual universe with no beginning nor end, the universe of cyberspace too hides among its nano particles of information and cryptic codes, unknown dangers, certain of which specific target – the most vulnerable users of the internet, children.  Children of Sri Lanka are in danger as much as children across the world, and even more so due to the lack of proper regulations and online safety protocols in action. Every day, more and more incidents of cybercrimes targeting children are reported, and many more being unknown and taking place unreported as well. The threat that the internet poses to children is insurmountable. From the exposure to unsuitable content, to more serious crimes targeting them, the violation of children’s rights is perpetrated in numerous forms and there is therefore, a dire need to ensure the safety of children online.  With the start of online education in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, children are liable to spend most of their time on the internet, making them one of the most frequent users as well as the most vulnerable. While the internet was the least frequent space of sexual violence of children decades prior, with the development of new technologies and the internet becoming more easily accessible, sexual crimes perpetrated against children online, have also increased in multitudes.  Online child abuse and exploitation is a form of child abuse that take place fundamentally in the cyberspace. The forms of online child abuse are, and not limited to, online bullying, sexting, sextortion, the creation and distribution of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) online grooming, and grave child sexual abuse and exploitation conducted online. These crimes would target the innocence, naivety and lack of understanding of children where they would be taken advantage of sexually and emotionally. Although in many cases, no bodily harm would be done by the perpetrator, it could leave a harrowing psychological and emotional impact on the children by instilling fear, shame and disgust in oneself, leading to long term psychological effects such as anxiety, trauma, and depression.  According to a forensic psychologist who has worked with child sex offenders, Dr. J. Sullivan, the number of child sexual material possessed by an offender had increased from an average of 150 to up to 150,000 due to the lowered risk of prosecution and higher accessibility online. There is also the emergence of newer forms of child sexual abuse online such as the use of virtual reality by the perpetrators, online gaming portals and even made to order CSAM of children where the perpetrator may order material based on gender, race, age, and even sexual conduct and settings where the subjects would be victimised. The newer forms exist in addition to the existent forms of the sexual exploitation of children, and also show the prospect of many more forms emerging as long as such crimes remain to be not properly regulated and unreported.  When it comes to Sri Lanka, as online education continues, it is not only online sexual abuse that children are exposed to, but also other forms of abuse such as online bullying and discrimination, addiction to social media, online gaming and interactions with unknown people, all of which could lead to various psychological effects. Furthermore, children are sexually exploited online and CSAM are created, released and distributed on the internet as well. According to the Police Children and Women Bureau, nearly 18,000 material of child sexual abuse (including pornographic images and videos of minors) have been released onto the internet through Sri Lankan internet protocol addresses within just a little over a month between June and July 2021, which counts up to 18 CSAM released per hour and 420 per 24 hours. Although the Police had announced the tracking and tracing of such content and taking necessary action, little had been done due to the lack of proper law enforcement mechanisms and the existing laws and regulations not being adequate for the purpose. Not enough reports on online child sexual abuse are existent in the current databases of the Government authorities, leading to the question as to whether these atrocities are being reported enough or at all.  However, one such incident created a stir in the communities, where a 15-year-old girl child was trafficked online, and sexually exploited and was taken advantage of by various abusers and predators, some of whom were of well-reputed occupations and social statuses. However, little was done in this regard and the perpetrators were released on bail. The progress of the incident has been unknown since then while it may have left harrowing psychological and physical effects on the victimised child.  Furthermore, due to the lack of proper internet controls and mechanisms, explicit material is easily accessible to children online. The outcome of this could be seen in the increasing number of sexual assaults perpetrated on minors by minors, where most of the perpetrators were found to have been motivated to do such indecent acts by the explicit content that they have viewed online. There are no mechanisms implemented to block underage users from accessing such material on the internet, and it is a part of the responsibility of internet service providers to implement such mechanisms.  On the other hand, this also shows the importance of providing sex education to children, and how the content in the current curriculum needs to be changed, from only explaining the biological aspects of human reproduction and sexuality, to including important concepts such as sexual abuse and its different forms, protective sexual conduct, birth control, the importance of consent and so on. It is also important to educate children on proper conduct when interacting on the internet, educate them on online safety and precautions as well as how they could identify danger online and how they should react on such occasions. It is also important that teachers, parents, guardians, and caregivers are well-versed on this subject so that such incidents could be identified, monitored, and taken action against when needed. It is also important that internet providers introduce programmes and mechanisms that can be used to regulate children’s internet usage, monitor their activities, and block the accessibility of unwanted and explicit content.  It is the duty and responsibility of adults to create a safe space for children in order to protect them from abuses perpetrated online. And this safe space should not only be limited to the internet but in their homes and schools as well. Children’s young minds can be easily manipulated, their naivety and innocence can be easily taken advantage of by predators and their curiosity and lack of proper understanding could lead them to do certain things that they would later regret. Due to the pandemic and homebound online education, the lack of physical interaction with their teachers, friends and classmates, without the benevolence of the school environment, children’s emotional and physical needs are not fulfilled. They may feel trapped, having to attend school on the internet on their own, and they may feel lonely without any interactions with their school environment and classmates. Many children had reached their puberty while being confined to their homes, experiencing bodily, hormonal and psychological changes without sharing the same sentiments with their classmates. This may have led to experimenting, experiencing, and curiosity getting the best of them.  Therefore, it is important to understand that the responsibility is not solely of the children but is also of the teachers, parents and guardians. They must be committed to ensuring the safety of children online by creating an environment where children would not feel trapped to only their education but have enough space to fulfil their emotional needs. Their guardians must be open to listen to them, discuss and provide advice whenever needed in a kind and understanding manner with the best interest of the children as the first priority. Always keeping a keen eye on the child’s online behaviour and activities, but not in a manner that would make them feel intimidated, but in a friendly, casual atmosphere where they would feel comfortable to share their screen with the adults as well.  The internet, in its truest form, is lawless. There is no order or authority and information would flow rapidly and freely without proper surveillance in place. Children with their limited knowledge and understanding, when exposed and when interacting with cyberspace would be in constant danger. As adults and advocates, our purpose should not be limited to recording and reporting the number of child related crimes every year and analysing their trends, but also focus on better policy making and stricter regulations on internet usage and the better monitoring of cyber activities.  Protecting Environment and Children Everywhere (PEaCE)/End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and the Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes (ECPAT) Sri Lanka is a non-Governmental organisation (NGO) which is dedicated to protecting children from all forms of abuse and exploitation. As the number of crimes against children increased during the lockdown period, the organization recognised the dire need of civil society intervention in order to protect children from such atrocities.  The organisation conducted research on the shortcomings of the current legal framework with regard to child sexual abuse online and identified several gaps in the existing laws and in the responses of child protection and law enforcement agencies. The report points out the need for the categorisation of data related to child-related sexual crimes online, the lack of proper training of the staff of law enforcement and child protection agencies, the need of a centralised complaint system as opposed to the multiple systems of this nature that currently operate, reformation of and amendments to the current legal framework as well as the inclusion of the Convention on Cybercrime/the Budapest Convention and the Council of Europe Convention on Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse/the Lanzarote Convention.  PEaCE had also made several important publications on online safety directed to both children and adults, all in the hope of reducing child-related crimes online. As an organisation, it is their mission to actively contribute, primarily to the elimination of sexual exploitation of children and to strive to promote the protection of children from all forms of abuse and exploitation. And we believe that on World’s Children’s Day 2021, it is also our duty to protect, promote and ensure the safety of our children online, across the nation. If you feel that you or someone you know may be affected be going through a similar situation, the following institutions would assist you: Police Child and Women Bureau: 011 2444444 NCPA: 1929 LEADS: 011 495 4111 Sri Lanka Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT): 011 269 1692 (PEaCE-ECPAT Sri Lanka is a campaign-cum-organisation which is a NGO committed to protecting children from all forms of abuse and exploitation. If a child’s safety is compromised in any form, PEaCE can be reached on 011-2819397 or via email at info@ecpat.lk) The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect those of this publication.


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