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Internet child abuse: Up to six in ten young Poles targeted

Internet child abuse: Up to six in ten young Poles targeted

Image source: © Maja Staśko / Instagram
Maja Kozłowska,
23.05.2024 17:00

Activist, publicist, and social activist Maja Staśko participated in the #ToNieJestNormalne (English: #ThisIsNotNormal) campaign, revealing frightening data.

The echoes of the Pandora Gate scandal are still present, though they seem to have quietened down. It is unclear what has happened to Stuu or whether anyone from his immediate circle has faced any consequences. Even social ostracism has been ineffective - Boxdel, who was also involved in the scandal, continues his activities as if nothing happened. Only Marcin Dubiel has gone into hiding, but no one knows for how long.

Activist Maja Staśko has taken it upon herself to raise awareness about the online dangers children and young people face. Research indicates that as many as six out of ten children in Poland are subjected to sexual abuse on the Internet.

"If six out of ten children using a given product were victims of sexual abuse, it would be banned and outlawed immediately. However, these situations occur online daily," says Maja Staśko, an activist and journalist.

The activist has unveiled an unusual shop window in Warsaw to draw attention to the problem of online safety. The shop can be visited from 22 May to 24 May at 87 Marszałkowska Street in Warsaw. "We launched this shop window to highlight the reality faced by children in Poland and to say 'enough'," emphasises Staśko.

Children on the internet are victims of abuse

The posters displayed in a shop window in Warsaw are designed to provoke action and take a firm stance on children's and young people's safety online.

"The show window conveys a powerful message about the scale of child sexual abuse and highlights the paradoxical situation where abusers are protected under EU law. Passers-by can scan the QR code to access information on child protection on the internet," reads the press release.

Window shop in Warsaw
Window shop in Warsaw (Press Release)

#ToNieJestNormalne reveals horrific data.

The #ThisIsNormal campaign conducted a survey among 2,000 respondents, comprising Polish men and women between the ages of 18 and 35. The findings are alarming.

- 57% of respondents reported experiencing inappropriate sexual comments, photographs, videos, or contact from adults online when they were underage. Among women aged 18-25, the percentage was as high as 76%.

- The most common incidents involved adults sending sexual content (11%), steering conversations towards sexual topics (10%), and making sexual comments about a child's body (7%).

- These situations most frequently occur on platforms such as Snapchat, Messenger, Gadu-Gadu, and Instagram.

- 17% of respondents said an adult urged them to keep their relationship a secret, 13% were offered inappropriate gifts, and 8% felt an adult tried to isolate them from friends or family.

"Every day of delay by politicians means more people are exposed to online harm. It must be a priority for the new MEPs to pass an EU regulation on preventing and combating child sexual abuse. We cannot wait any longer," urges Maja Staśko. The survey was carried out by the social impact agency Purpose.

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