The protection of children against online violence

Doc. 15954: compendium of written amendments | Doc. 15954 | 18/04/2024 | Final version

Contents

A Draft Resolution

B Draft Recommendation

Compendium index

Amendment 2 Amendment 1 Amendment 3 Amendment 4 Amendment 5 Sub-amendment 1 to amendment 5 Amendment 6

Caption: AdoptedRejectedWithdrawnNo electronic votes

ADraft Resolution

1The Parliamentary Assembly stresses the urgent need to protect children from violence in the digital environment, especially in view of growing dangers on the internet and new forms of online violence.

2Children are increasingly exposed to various forms of online violence, sometimes from an early age. The physical and psychological repercussions are often devastating. Increased use of the internet and digital tools, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdowns, has led to children being overexposed to age-inappropriate content and behaviour. Smartphones have undoubtedly opened up a new avenue for personal development online, but they are also a potential source of violence.

3Creating a safe environment and minimising the risk of harm are essential to protect children online. Mindful of the difficulty of reconciling the protection of children and their freedom of expression and other competing rights, the Assembly reiterates that the best interests of the child must prevail in the development and implementation of any measure or policy.

4The Assembly therefore calls on member States to establish a comprehensive legal framework that protects children in the digital environment by applying an integrated and balanced approach to reduce exposure to harm online while not infringing on children’s opportunities to benefit from the internet. In particular, it asks the member States to take the following steps to protect children:

4.1as a minimum standard, impose effective age verification obligations on websites, particularly on sites providing goods and content which are not intended for children, and which would incur similar obligations in the offline world;

4.2involve and raise awareness of parents and caregivers, who often lack the knowledge and support to detect online exploitation, abuse and violence, and empower them to deal with it;

• Amendment 2
• Amendment 1

18 April 2024

Tabled by Mr Ion GROZA, Mr Ričards ŠLESERS, Mr Birgir THÓRARINSSON, Mr Ionuț-Marian STROE, Mr Serhii SOBOLIEV, Ms Yelyzaveta YASKO

In the draft resolution, paragraph 4.2, replace the words "and violence" with the following words:

"violence and exposure of children to pornography"

18 April 2024

Tabled by Mr Ion GROZA, Mr Ričards ŠLESERS, Mr Birgir THÓRARINSSON, Mr Ionuț-Marian STROE, Mr Serhii SOBOLIEV, Ms Yelyzaveta YASKO

Votes: 36 in favor 4 against 0 abstention

In the draft resolution, paragraph 4.2, after the words "deal with it", insert the following words:

", with the backing of civil society and families' organisations"

4.3take specific measures to protect young children from premature exposure to the digital environment given their vulnerability to, inter alia, violent or sexual content and the limited benefits of digital tools with respect to their particular physical, physiological, social and stimulation needs;

• Amendment 3

18 April 2024

Tabled by Mr Ion GROZA, Mr Ričards ŠLESERS, Mr Birgir THÓRARINSSON, Mr Ionuț-Marian STROE, Mr Serhii SOBOLIEV, Ms Yelyzaveta YASKO

In the draft resolution, paragraph 4.3, replace the words "violent or sexual content" with the following words:

"violent, sexual or pornographic content"

4.4in order to prevent child sexual abuse material and punish perpetrators, set up hash databases supplemented with the due cybersecurity measures with a view to expediting actions to identify and locate children subjected to sexual exploitation or abuse; remove or restrict access to such content; apprehend perpetrators; and provide child victims with the necessary psychological support and rehabilitative care;

4.5implement school-based educational programmes, in particular to promote peer-to-peer interactions and parental involvement;

• Amendment 4

18 April 2024

Tabled by Mr Ion GROZA, Mr Ričards ŠLESERS, Mr Birgir THÓRARINSSON, Mr Ionuț-Marian STROE, Mr Serhii SOBOLIEV, Ms Yelyzaveta YASKO

In the draft resolution, paragraph 4.5, after the words "school-based educational programmes", insert the following words:

"and outdoor activities"

4.6in such programmes, provide children and young people with training on assertiveness, empathy, problem solving, emotion management and help seeking;

4.7implement comprehensive sexuality education that covers the issues of online dating and relationships in depth and aims to counter portrayals of violence in sexual relationships and homophobic bullying;

• Amendment 5
• Sub-amendment 1 to amendment 5

18 April 2024

Tabled by Mr Ion GROZA, Mr Ričards ŠLESERS, Mr Birgir THÓRARINSSON, Mr Ionuț-Marian STROE, Mr Serhii SOBOLIEV, Ms Yelyzaveta YASKO

Votes: 32 in favor 4 against 0 abstention

In the draft resolution, at the beginning of paragraph 4.7, insert the following words:

"raise awareness about the fight against the oversexualisation of children and"

18 April 2024

Tabled by the Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development

In amendment 5, replace the words "at the beginning of" with the following words:

"at the end of"

4.8run information and awareness-raising campaigns on harmful deepfakes, including those of a pornographic nature; ban deepfakes and ensure their removal from digital platforms.

5The Assembly recommends that member States work closely with stakeholders in the technology industry in order to:

5.1improve the development of policies and regulatory frameworks and facilitate their appropriation and implementation by the technology industry;

5.2increase the accountability and responsibility of stakeholders in the technology industry to protect child users, including by requiring them to provide assistance to law enforcement authorities in terms of technical support and equipment to facilitate the identification of perpetrators of crimes against children and the collection of evidence required for criminal proceedings;

5.3develop and implement policies that address cyberbullying, harassment and incitement to hatred and violence in the digital environment, including clear information on unacceptable behaviour, reporting mechanisms and the importance of support for children affected by such conduct;

5.4integrate safety and privacy in the design and by default, while taking into account children’s right to protection from violence online, as guiding principles for the features and functionalities of products and services intended for or used by children.

• Amendment 6

18 April 2024

Tabled by Mr Ion GROZA, Mr Ričards ŠLESERS, Mr Birgir THÓRARINSSON, Mr Ionuț-Marian STROE, Mr Serhii SOBOLIEV, Ms Yelyzaveta YASKO

Votes: 16 in favor 17 against 3 abstentions

In the draft resolution, paragraph 5.4, after the words "used by children", insert the following words:

", and to further analyse the links between pornography consumption and child sexual abuse;"

6In line of the latest edition of the European Day on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse on 18 November 2023, the Assembly is convinced of the importance of learning from victims and survivors of childhood sexual violence in order to develop effective policies based on real-life experiences. It recommends that member States listen to victims of childhood online violence, taking all necessary precautions, when drawing up measures and policies to prevent, protect against and combat online violence.

7The Assembly notes the importance of international and cross-border co-operation in protecting children from online violence and calls for as many countries as possible around the world to accede to the relevant treaties and effective mechanisms that already exist. In this respect, it calls for:

7.1observer States and St ates whose parliaments enjoy observer or partner for democracy status with the Assembly to accede to the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse (CETS No. 201, Lanzarote Convention);

7.2member and observer States of the Council of Europe, and States whose parliaments enjoy observer or partner for democracy status with the Assembly that have not yet done so to accede to the Convention on Cybercrime (ETS No. 185, Budapest Convention);

7.3Council of Europe member States that have not yet done so to join INTERPOL and its International Child Sexual Exploitation Database to exchange information on child sexual abuse cases.

8The Assembly commends the Committee of the Parties to the Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse (Lanzarote Committee) for its work on the second monitoring round (2017-2022) on the implementation of the Lanzarote Convention, focusing on the protection of children against sexual exploitation and sexual abuse facilitated by information and communication technologies (ICTs) and addressing the challenges raised by child self-generated sexual images and/or videos. It invites the States Parties to the Lanzarote Convention to pursue their work on children and emerging technologies, in particular artificial intelligence and the virtual world, in greater depth, taking into consideration new risks for children, including those linked to deepfakes of a sexual or pornographic nature.

9The Assembly is determined to further examine the issue of “violent pornography”, including pornography available online, taking into account the specific problem of children being exposed to such content.

BDraft Recommendation

1The Parliamentary Assembly refers to its Resolution … (2024) “The protection of children against online violence”. It invites the Committee of Ministers to take into due consideration, in its work, the dangers posed by the internet to children, who are more exposed to violence and new forms of violence in the online environment, in particular by:

1.1considering and incorporating the best interests of the child in the Framework Convention on Artificial Intelligence, Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law, including the protection of children’s human rights from the dangers of artificial intelligence;

1.2taking online violence into account in its feasibility study on age-appropriate comprehensive sexuality education;

1.3strengthening international co-operation with relevant organisations, including the European Commission and relevant European Union agencies such as Europol and the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, and INTERPOL, with a view to focusing attention on the protection of children’s human rights and the best interests of the child.

2The Assembly calls on the Committee of Ministers to strengthen co-operation with digital industry stakeholders in order to find adaptable and sustainable solutions to protect children from online violence, including by:

2.1as a first step, assessing the reliability of age verification tools, depending on the content and the age of child users;

2.2providing children and parents with tools to raise awareness of the dangers of the internet;

2.3making online tools available to enable easy reporting of incidents of online violence, and providing help and support, particularly psychological care, for child victims.