39 Amendments of Julie WARD related to 2015/2129(INI)
Amendment 7 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Recalls that the fight against the sexual abuse of children needs a comprehensive, multi-disciplinary approach encompassing prevention; insists, for that reason, that measures such as awareness raising, training and education are just as essential in the fight against these crimes as assistance to victims and their families, investigation of crimes and prosecution of offenders;
Amendment 9 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1 a. Notes the Commission's reports on the implementation of Directive 2011/93/EU and agrees that despite the recent developments there is still a room for improvement until the Directive reaches its full potential across all Member States; repeats that the child's best interest must be the primary consideration in the implementation of the Directive 2011/93 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 2011 on combating the sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children and child pornography; urges the Commission to assist the Member States in achieving correct and full transposition and implementation of the Directive across the EU so that children can benefit from its full added value;
Amendment 12 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 b (new)
Paragraph 1 b (new)
1 b. Notes with concern that the main challenges for Member States in implementing Directive 2011/93 are related to the provisions concerning preventive and intervention measures and assistance, support and protection to child victims; encourages the Commission in its implementation report to provide information on the best practices of actual measures adopted in different Member States and their impact in the fight against sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children and child abuse images;
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 c (new)
Paragraph 1 c (new)
1 c. Reports that sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children offline and online, including child abuse material, continues to be a major concern and a serious crime and violation of fundamental rights of the victims; stresses that these crimes cause short and long term physical, psychological and social harm to children with a continuous risk of re-victimisation and stigmatisation of the victims through the online environment;
Amendment 14 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 d (new)
Paragraph 1 d (new)
1 d. Urges that a comprehensive policy response against the new forms of child sexual exploitation and abuse on the internet, such as cyber predation, sex extortion, commercial web streaming, revenge pornography, voyeurism, and grooming is urgently needed, including the strengthening of efforts and resources dedicated to victim identification and victim-centre services; recommends the Commission, in this regard, to further assess if the objectives of the Directive 2011/93 have been achieved effectively and if the Directive provides relevant response to the new digital and technological challenges and threats;
Amendment 15 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Is concerned that the non- consensual distribution of erotic or pornographic material, including the phenomenon of so-called ‘revenge porn’– a rapidly increasing form of abuse – overwhelmingly affects women and girls, some of whom are under the legal age of consent; emphasises the need to educate young girlwomen, girls and vulnerable adults on the possible consequences of takrecording intimate photographs of themselvesimages, such as photographs and videos, of themselves; Highlights the need for awareness raising and training amongst education, youth and community workers and volunteers regarding the issue, as well as strengthening the capacity of law enforcement agencies to tackle these risks in a gender sensitive manner;
Amendment 16 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Encourages all Member States who still have not fully implemented Article 23 of the Directive2, 23, 24 and Article 18, 19 and 20 of the Directive to do so without delay and in particular to adopt preventive measures concerning the regular training of officials likely to come into contact with children;
Amendment 16 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Is concerned that the non- consensual distribution of erotic or pornographic material, including online and through social media, such as the phenomenon of so-called ‘revenge porn’– a rapidly increasing form of abuse and persecution – overwhelmingly affects women and girls, some of whom are under the legal age of consent; calls on the Member States to step up concrete measures to combat this new form of crime and on the internet industry to take their shared responsibility; emphasises the need to educate young girls on the possible consequences of taking intimate photographs or videos of themselves;
Amendment 22 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2 a. Calls on Member States in accordance with Article 23 to provide appropriate training and build competences with the new threats in the online environment and the widespread use of and access to mobile technologies and the internet, in particular among the judiciary and police units to assist them to properly investigate and prosecute perpetrators and to offer assistance to the victims;
Amendment 22 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Emphasises the need to raise awareness at an early stage among all girls and boys about staying safe and about the importance of respecting the dignity and privacy of others in the digital era; encourages Member States to share best practices on education material and training programmes for all actors involved, such as teachers, educators, law enforcement authorities on grooming and other forms of risk to the safety of children online, in particular for girls;
Amendment 23 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2 b. Repeats that sufficient funds, human resources and investigative powers and tools including developing high-tech capabilities are needed to prevent illegal content online, to provide better and faster identification of victims and offenders and to respond to the new phenomena and expanding trends online, including new distribution and transaction models for child abuse material;
Amendment 25 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 c (new)
Paragraph 2 c (new)
2 c. Agrees that awareness-raising materials, channels and campaigns for both children and adults, especially parents and those in contact with children need to be promoted at grass-root level with a view to help them understand and prevent online risks, provide safe online environment and promote positive online experience for children;
Amendment 26 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 d (new)
Paragraph 2 d (new)
2 d. Encourages the Commission and Member States to promote training and educational initiatives to all relevant stakeholders, including children, parents, teachers, social workers, child protection officers, civil organisations and national authorities; supports age appropriate innovative tools to promote empowerment, media literacy and online safety as compulsory education at schools;
Amendment 27 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 e (new)
Paragraph 2 e (new)
2 e. Calls on Member States and the Commission to enhance its efforts in promptly identifying victims and ensuring that they receive the necessary assistance, psychological support and protection to recover from the abuse; encourages Member States to provide victims a child friendly justice system to avoid secondary victimisation of a child;
Amendment 28 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Underlines that the prevention measures should cover technology related aspects in particular, with a view to ensuring a safer internet and digital literacy; welcomes various initiatives, such as age appropriate privacy settings on the internet and other online innovative safety tools, aimed at making the internet a place of opportunities for children to communicate, to access information, and to develop their skills in an enhanced online safety environment;
Amendment 28 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Stresses the need for holistic sex and relationship education, which must address subjects like pornography and conduct online and on social networks; Reiterates the need for ICT education, especially for women and girls, formal, informal and non-formal, including an emphasis on digital literacy and awareness-raising of risks online; Notes that education programmes and content tackling these issues must also focus on boys and young men breaking down gender stereotypes, sexism, and behaviours leading to harassment online;
Amendment 32 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Calls on the Member States to step up measures to protect victims of child sexual abuse and to improve the role of national helplines, with a gender sensitive approach;
Amendment 33 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2b. Notes that life-long learning and digital and media literacy education for all ages are important in raising awareness of online safety and privacy issues, also enabling parents and carers to be better informed on these issues;
Amendment 43 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 e (new)
Paragraph 3 e (new)
3e. Calls on the Member States to step up cooperation and to exchange data to identify children victims of sexual abuse, including missing children, especially girls who are particularly vulnerable to trafficking and sexual exploitation;
Amendment 44 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Recalls that the online sexual exploitation of children is a constantly evolving phenomenon with long term recurring consequences for its victims which parallels developments in technology; underlines that peer-to-peer and Deep Web and Darknet networks provide a high degree of anonymity for offenders and are therefore used for exchanging child sexual abuse material;
Amendment 48 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. RecommendStresses that blacklists of websites containing child pornography be prepared by national authorities and communicated to Internet service providers need to be based on clear and transparent criteria providing adequate level of legal certainty and predictability and complying with the existing legal and judiciary procedures, the European Convention for the Protection of Human rights and Fundamental Freedoms and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union; recommends also the sharing of such blacklists of websites among the Member States through enhanced cooperation with Europol and its European Cybercrime Centre, and with Interpol;
Amendment 54 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Recommends that blacklists of websites containing child pornography be prepared by national authorities and communicated to Internet service providers; recommends also the sharing of such blacklists of websites among the Member States and with child protection organisations through enhanced cooperation with Europol and its European Cybercrime Centre, and with Interpol;
Amendment 57 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Encourages Member States to exchangein accordance to Article 24(4) to provide assessment for convicted offenders of the danger and risk of recidivism they represent; supports the exchange of such assessment and criminal records information about child sex offenders between law enforcement authorities so as to prevent sex offendersthem from moving unnoticed from one Member State to another for work or fin particular if working or volunteering with children or children’s institutions;
Amendment 59 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Encourages Member States to exchange information about child sex offenders so as to prevent sex offenders from moving unnoticed from one Member State to another for work or for volunteering with children or children’s institutions; calls on Member States to step up information sharing on criminal convictions and disqualifications and to improve data collection in national registers of perpetrators;
Amendment 69 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Urges the Member States to make it mandatory for Internet service providers (ISP) to report child sexual abuse material detected in their infrastructure to law enforcement authorities and calls on the ISPs to preserve evidence on the basis of due legal process and in accordance with the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child; stresses the important role of ICT and ISPs in ensuring fast and efficient removal of illegal content online at the request of the responsible law enforcement authorities;
Amendment 72 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Urges the Member States to make it mandatory for Internet service providers (ISP) to report child sexual abuse material detected in their infrastructure to law enforcement authorities, as well as national hotlines, and calls on the ISPs to preserve evidence;
Amendment 78 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Urges Member States which have not yet done so to put in place hotlines to which Internet users can report child sexual abuse material they find online and that are capable of assessing this reported content with a view to implementing notice and take-down procedures; takes the view that such hotlines should be allowed to search for child sexual abuse material proactively, as is the case for the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) in the UK; calls on Member States for a better cooperation between helplines and hotlines to ensure protection of children victim of sexual exploitation and abuse;
Amendment 81 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Urges Member States which have not yet done so to put in place and support safe and child sensitive reporting and counselling mechanisms, such as telephone or internet helplines and hotlines to which Internet users can report child sexual abuse material they find online and that are capable of assessing this reported content with a view to implementing notice and take-down procedures; takes the view that such hotlines should be allowed to search for child sexual abuse material proactively, as is the case for the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) in the UK;
Amendment 83 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8 a. Urges Member States to ensure that citizens have access to the service operating hotline 116 000 to report missing children and to provide social support services for children and families in cases when a child goes missing, child abduction and where the life of a child is at risk;
Amendment 86 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Urges Member States to introduce in their legislation mandatory background checks for persons applying or volunteering for activities or jobs relating to children, including software and online content developers, and to systematically exchange information on individuals posing a risk to children;
Amendment 93 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Notes that measures taken by Member States to prevent illegal content online have not been effective enough; highlights that about half of the Member States have chosen to apply – besides measures aimed at the prompt removal of web pages containing child sexual abuse material in accordance with Article 25 (1) – measures which are optional under Article 25 (2) of the Directive to block access to websites containing or disseminating child pornography;
Amendment 95 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10 a. Stresses that when Member States impose measures limiting the fundamental rights on the internet in relation to Article 25 the principles of transparency, necessity and proportionality need to be safeguarded in line with the law of the EU and of Member States and they need to provide the reason for the restriction and possibility of redress;
Amendment 97 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10 b (new)
Paragraph 10 b (new)
10 b. Stresses that children's personal data must be duly protected and children and parents need to be informed of the risks and consequences of using children's personal data online;
Amendment 98 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10 c (new)
Paragraph 10 c (new)
10 c. Agrees that multi-stakeholder engagement and cooperation between private and public sector including civil society, law enforcement agencies, agencies working with children, social service, private industry stakeholders such as technology industry, is crucial to effectively detect and fight illegal material and dissemination of child sexual abuse material online;
Amendment 99 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10 d (new)
Paragraph 10 d (new)
10 d. Highlights also the need for international cooperation and transitional investigation with EU's strategic partners and law enforcement authorities to fight child sexual abuse and exploitation online;
Amendment 100 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10 e (new)
Paragraph 10 e (new)
10 e. Repeats that precise statistics and data on the number of crimes committed especial in the area of child sexual abuse is still lacking due to the high percentage of unreported cases, novelty of the offences, and the differences of definitions and methodologies used in various Member States;
Amendment 103 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Calls on the Member States to accelerate, in cooperation with the internet industry, the notice and take-down procedures on the basis of due legal process and in accordance with the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Amendment 108 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 11 a (new)
Paragraph 11 a (new)
11 a. Highlights that there is an increasing threat to children affected by the refugee crisis exposing them to increased risk of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse, in particular for unaccompanied minor children, as many are reported missing after their arrival; urges the Commission and Member States to address this phenomenon and to adopt effective measures to improve the situation and reinforce children's protection;
Amendment 111 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 11 a (new)
Paragraph 11 a (new)
11 a. Calls on the Member States to ensure that illegal content is not only taken down quickly, but stays down;