For every cat photo, 78 images of child sex crimes are shared on the Internet. A horror denounced in an effective way by an NGO, on this European Day against sexual crimes against children.
What types of content are shared the most on the Internet? Selfies, photos of cute cats, but also… pedophile content. In this regard, France holds a very sad record: that of the third country hosting child pornography content in the world in 2020, according to the association Point de Contact. In addition, children are the first victims of sexual violence in the world according to Muriel Salmona, psychiatrist and expert on the subject.
On this European day against sexual crimes against children, the Belgian association Child Focus decides to publicize the subject, thanks to a very striking initiative.
"Make the Internet cuter"
Child Focus's proposal: "You too, post a picture of your cat, along with this message and the #catsforkids. This will bring attention to this injustice and make the internet a little cuter." One way to question a frightening statistic: according to the association, when a person posts a cat photo on the web, at the same time, other netizens will post 78 pictures of child sex crimes.
Interpol estimates that 19 million images of abuse are shared every day on the internet or via social networks, which is 78 times more than the number of photos of cats shared each day. They are shared on social networks, but also private messaging like what’s app, on pedophile networks, on the dark web. Interpol underlines the seriousness of the phenomenon: "The younger the victims, the more severe the abuse they endure. 84% of the images depict a sexual act. Over 60% of unidentified victims are pre-adolescents, including babies and very young children. 65 % of unidentified victims are girls. Boys are more represented in images showing severe abuse. 92% of visible offenders are men. "
Reporting this content and denouncing it must be a reflex. In France, this is done through the government portal or that of the Point de Contact association, dedicated to the fight for a safer Internet.
On this day of mobilization, the associations which campaign on the subject of sexual crimes against children are also calling for the end of impunity for these crimes, the imprescriptibility of sexual crimes against minors and the lifting of the statute of limitations for crimes. serial sexual intercourse and during traumatic amnesia.