MEP Marcel Kolaja (Pirates) in a picture from January 19, 2019.
Prague – The Czech Republic has not sufficiently transposed the 2011 European directive on combating sexual abuse of children and child pornography into its legislation. It concerns measures to strengthen prevention and protection. There are penalties for this. MEP Marcel Kolaja (Pirates) and government commissioner for human rights Klára Šimáčková Laurenčíková said this at a press conference today. According to Kolaji, the EU is now preparing a new regulation aimed at protecting children from abuse on the Internet.
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“The problem goes beyond the borders of the Czech Republic. It makes sense to solve it at the European level… The European Union can exert more pressure on large platforms like Facebook or Google than the Czech Republic itself. European coordination is important,” said Kolaja.
According to him, compromise proposals are now being negotiated in the new directive. Among other things, it is about balancing the protection of children and the right to privacy. He stated that the Czech Republic had transposed the previous directive into its legislation, but insufficiently so. The Republic is thus threatened with heavy fines due to non-fulfilment of the obligation to proceed with the European Commission.
According to the commissioner, the topic of protecting children from sexual abuse or Internet outages needs to be included in education. Modern sex education and an emphasis on mental health should be part of the curriculum, said Šimáčková Laurenčíková. He believes that children should also learn more about their rights. They should be able to recognize risks and inappropriate behavior. Education should also target parents. Help, counseling or therapy should be available for people with an “atypical sexual preference”, the representative said. Professionals who work with children should also be trained. The MEP said that there should also be a discussion on toughening the penalties for child abuse on the Internet.
People with problematic sexual behavior can find information about free and anonymous help on the website of the Parafilik project, which is organized by the National Institute of Mental Health . It mainly focuses on those who are sexually attracted to children and minors or are excited by violence without their partner's consent.
According to Kolaja and Laurenčíková, a round table meeting of experts should be held to protect children. It should be attended by representatives of the departments of justice, education, health, interior and labor. The date has not yet been set.
