Malta joins global alliance to fight child sex abuse online

Malta has joined a Global Alliance against Child Sexual Abuse Online in an attempt to unite decision-makers all around the world to better identify and assist victims and to prosecute the perpetrators.

Launched by EU Commissioner for Home Affairs Cecilia Malmström, together with US Attorney General Eric Holder, the global alliance was needed more than ever in view of the ongoing technological and societal developments which have led abuse to attain an international dimension.

In his speech, justice minister Chris Said said it was "only appropriate that a truly global response is undertaken to counter it."

"Whilst concerned with the fact that child sexual abuse online has no borders and efforts to reduce such circulation have failed to produce satisfactory results to date, Malta is committed to pursue the shared policy targets of the Global Alliance by enhancing efforts to identify victims, whose sexual abuse is depicted in child pornography, and ensuring that they receive the necessary assistance, support and protection, enhancing efforts to investigate cases of child sexual abuse online and to identify and prosecute offenders, increasing public awareness of the risks posed by children's activities online, including the self-production of images, in order to reduce the production of new child pornography, and reducing the availability of child pornography online and the re-victimization of children," Said said.

Said said that Malta had sought to address the problem of online sexual abuse through raising awareness on both the benefits and the potential pitfalls of internet use, which can be exploited by abusers of child online activities.

"Yet, there is a constant need to ensure that national laws are as closely correlated as possible and that interpretations of the various provisions of the law do not vary too much. It is an ambiguity that potential abusers can continue with their activities undeterred," Said said.

Along with the 27 EU members and the US, the members of the Alliance include Albania, Australia, Cambodia, Croatia, Georgia, Ghana, Japan, Moldova, Montenegro, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, the Philippines, Serbia, Republic of Korea, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine and Vietnam. The Commissioner for Children Ms Helen Damato and Police Inspector Timothy Zammit attended the event.