Wereldwijde alliantie tegen kindermisbruik van start (en)

Representatives from 47 countries, including most EU member states and the USA, will confirm their commitment to create a Global Alliance aiming to tackle the horrific crime of child sexual abuse online, when they gather in Brussels on December 5. At the Conference to launch the alliance, ministers of the countries that have already endorsed the alliance, will adopt a joint declaration, which will form the cornerstone of its future decisions and actions.

The establishment of the Alliance has been an initiative of the European Commission, backed by the General Attorney’s office of the USA. Tomorrow’s event constitutes the culmination of a series of efforts and actions, including the adoption of relevant conclusions by the Justice and Home Affairs Council in June under the Danish Presidency.

Representing the Cyprus Presidency, Minister of Justice and Public Order, Mr. Loucas Louca, will inform the participants about the efforts of the Presidency to contribute to the overall target of combating cybercrime, which had been from the outset a priority for the Cyprus Presidency. Among the various actions carried out, the Presidency established a horizontal group (Friends of the Presidency on Cyber Issues) within the framework of the Council, to discuss all major aspects of Cyber security.

Apart from the ministerial conference, a significant part of tomorrow’s event will be the expert conference, where specialists and professionals will examine and analyse the current situation as regards the problem of sexual abuse of children online, while they will hold in depth discussions on the targets that need to be set in the context of the policy to be established by the Global Alliance. During the discussions, emphasis will given to issues of victim identification and assistance, investigation and prosecution of offenders, as well as ways of raising awareness.