"They're your kids and you have to mind them," was the message from Ms Audrey Conlon, a member of the Internet Advisory Board, whose first annual report was launched yesterday, by Minister of State, Mr Brian Lenihan. Marie O'Halloran reports.
Mr Lenihan, who has special responsibility for children, said the Government would "never rule out" the possibility of legislation to control child pornography on the Internet but there would be major difficulties in implementing it.
The Internet Advisory Board has favoured self-regulation as the best way to deal with child pornography.
The Minister also highlighted the importance of vigilance. Referring to a survey on Internet usage by Irish children, Mr Lenihan said 46 per cent of children said they were not allowed to talk to strangers in chat rooms. This was a "disturbingly low figure".
Praising the Internet Advisory Board, he said that all agencies had to work together to ensure children were not exposed to the "terrible, obscene and degrading material" on the Internet.
Ireland has strict legislation through the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act, but for the moment, the Government has no plans to introduce statutory measures. Ms Conlon, recently retired as deputy film censor, said Internet technology made traditional methods of control redundant. The board has encouraged Internet service providers (ISPs) to form an association, which is represented on the board. It also comprises the Garda, legal and child protection interests, and various Government Departments.
The board's main priorities for the next year are "awareness, awareness", said Ms Conlon and to have an effective awareness campaign that hits its target audience, they need more research.
Regulation had worked well and ISPs had been very co-operative, including shutting down inappropriate sites. The board had established a code of practice which had won EU acclaim.
Ms Conlon added that if self-regulation proved ineffective, the Government always had the option of legislation, which Australia had introduced.
Mr Lenihan noted a relatively high level of safety awareness in using the Internet among Irish adults and children, according to a survey conducted by the National Centre for Technology in Education.
It showed that 67 per cent of Irish parents checked their children while they were online, 83 per cent of respondents said they had heard the Internet safety guideline to "never give out your home address online" and 70 per cent of children said it was a rule in their home not to give out personal information. But there was still a "huge gap" between the awareness parents have of the physical danger, such as traffic, to their children and the dangers of the Internet.
Mr Lenihan said that Ireland would, as part of its EU presidency next year, introduce a major public awareness initiative, and he believed parents should be advised about Internet dangers, when they are buying computer technology.
The chairman of the board, Mr Eamon Barnes, said the Internet was being used in "increasingly ingenious ways" for the commission of crime, particularly child pornography.