THE digital age is not without a grave demerit — a child’s screen-time has replaced much of regular life. This concern is amplified by the presence of online child pornography rings always on the lookout for vulnerable minors to exploit. On Monday, the National Commission on the Rights of Child released a report, Situational analysis of child online protection in Pakistan, whichasserts that “children may be exposed to inappropriate content for their age or inappropriate contacts, which makes them highly vulnerable to violence including sexual abuse and exploitation — a risk that is growing exponentially with the rapidly increasing use of technology”, and alerts the judiciary, lawmakers and civil society to mounting incidents of online harassment of children through audio and video features.

In a scenario where past advice — in 2021, NCRC recommended that the FIA and police be fortified with scientific, financial and human resources to identify and probe sexually violent content for children — has fallen on deaf ears, the authorities must heed this warning. According to Unicef, the impact of any form of online abuse on a child is multilayered— mental, emotional and physical — ranging from fear and shame to loss of appetite and sleep. Unaddressed remorse, blame and anger trigger a bullying-victim cycle for revenge, thereby creating more perpetrators. The answer is not turned-off devices, which are vital for information and communication. Instead, cybersecurity requires an investment in training the police for appropriate and prompt response systems, a cyber-patrolling force that hunts down virtual offenders and combs through their records for other victims and encouraging families to come forward to lodge FIRs so a child is guilt-free. The state must clear the cyber environment with stringent implementation of laws and the transparent use of funds to ensure safe navigation for our children. While an ever-transforming web space is not easy to guard, it cannot grow into a death trap for children’s mental and social health.

Published in Dawn, March 13th, 2024