Brussels, 30/06/2011 (Agence Europe) - On 29 June, the Council and the EP agreed on the draft directive providing for punishments for those found guilty of sexual abuse against children and child pornography. The directive, which has still to be officially approved by the two institutions, harmonises some 20 criminal infringements, according to a press release issued by the Council. In this way, child sex abuse will be punished by at least one year's imprisonment in cases where a child is forced to witness sexual activities, up to imprisonment of at least 10 years if the child is forced to take part in them; for the sexual exploitation of children, sentences will range from a minimum of two years' imprisonment for adults involved in pornographic activities involving children and up to 10 years in the event of forced prostitution; possessing indecent images of children will be punishable by at least one year's imprisonment; producing such material will carry a sentence of at least three years. In most cases, according to the Council, reduced penalty thresholds have been brought in if it can be considered that the child has reached the age of sexual consent as defined by the national law.
The compromise obtained also attacks the practice of grooming, which consists of befriending children on social networking sites for sexual purposes and for the purposes of child pornography sites on the internet: on this point, the text places an obligation on the member states to ensure that any sites of this kind hosted on their territory are removed as quickly as possible and that they will seek to have them removed when they are hosted elsewhere; the member states may also block access to these websites, but in order to do so, must ensure that this is carried out within the framework of transparent procedures and provide guarantees if they block any sites. The member states must also exchange more information on sentences for paedophiles returned on their territory, so that paedophiles cannot go to another member state to find work giving them contact with children. Employers in these sectors will, furthermore, be able to ask for additional information from candidates' criminal records and past history.
The directive also provides for the fight against sex tourism to be stepped up, with the introduction of a “competence” for the member states when their nationals are found to have committed crimes outside the EU. Lastly, the member states will be obliged to assist and protect child abuse victims during the investigation and legal proceedings. (S.P./transl.fl)