Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
On the sidelines of the meetings of the Interior and Justice Ministers of the European Union countries today, Friday, the Council approved its position on a proposal to update the rules of the European Union's criminal law on child sexual abuse and child sexual exploitation. The revised rules broaden the definition of crimes, ensuring that all forms of child sexual abuse and sexual exploitation are criminalized, including those enabled or facilitated by new Internet tools. They also introduce higher penalties and contain more specific requirements for prevention and assistance to victims. According to a European statement distributed in Brussels, this position is the basis for entering into talks with the European Parliament to approve a final law. The statement quoted the Minister of Justice of Hungary, Bence Tosson, whose country holds the current rotating presidency of the Union, as saying that "the protection of the most vulnerable groups in our societies - children - must be our priority. With these new rules, we strengthen the fight against child sexual abuse, including in relation to the live broadcast of abuse or the use of artificial intelligence to generate abusive material."
Expanded definition of criminal offences
In order to ensure that all forms of child sexual abuse and sexual exploitation are criminalized, the Member States have agreed to update the definition of these crimes. Under the new rules, Member States are obliged to criminalise, investigate and prosecute the offence of broadcasting child sexual abuse. Payments for access to live broadcasts of child sexual abuse have been on the rise in recent years.

The updated directive also includes realistic images of child sexual abuse material in the definition of the offence. This should make it possible to better respond to the increasing emergence of fake or AI-generated pornography.

In addition, the Council has introduced the offence of providing instructions on how to commit child sexual abuse, sexual exploitation or the enticement of children for sexual purposes. For example, a person who distributes and produces a manual – whether published, written or online – that helps others to sexually abuse a child will be punished.

Higher penalties
The penalties for several offences have been increased. For example, when a child in a particularly vulnerable situation, in particular due to disability, is abused in order to engage in sexual activity with a child, the perpetrator will be punished with a maximum penalty of at least 10 years’ imprisonment (instead of the current 8 years). The maximum penalty is at least 5 years’ imprisonment, up from the current 3 years, when the child reaches the age of sexual majority.

Member States may provide for more stringent penalties in their national legislation.

Consent
As in current legislation, it remains up to the State to determine the age of sexual majority, i.e. the age at which sexual activity with a child under the age of majority is prohibited.
However, the amended rules more clearly state that sexual activity with children who have reached the age of sexual majority must be a punishable offence if the child does not consent. The directive states that consent must be given voluntarily, as the child’s free will, and can be withdrawn at any time. It also states that consent cannot be considered to exist in cases where the child is incapable of forming a free will.
Strengthening prosecution and victim support
In order to ensure that victims can effectively seek justice, the Council has introduced a new paragraph on statutes of limitations. The new rules also ensure that offences can be investigated and prosecuted for a sufficient period of time after the victim has reached the age of majority. This period ranges from at least 10 years for crimes punishable by a maximum penalty of at least five years’ imprisonment, to at least 20 years for crimes punishable by a maximum penalty of at least 10 years’ imprisonment.

The new rules will also facilitate reporting of child sexual abuse or child sexual exploitation. Member States will need to ensure that victims are able to report these crimes through accessible, user-friendly, safe and easily accessible channels (online). Information on how to report sexual abuse and the tools needed to do so should be designed and made available in a child-friendly manner and using child-friendly language.

Support for victims of child sexual abuse and sexual exploitation will also be improved. According to the Council text, victims of these crimes should be provided with age-appropriate medical care, emotional, psychological, psychosocial and educational support, as well as legal advice. The new guidelines will also include rules on temporary accommodation for victims.

Compensation
The Council position includes new rules on compensation for victims and survivors of child sexual abuse. According to the Council’s position, Member States must ensure that victims have the right to claim compensation from the perpetrator for the damage they have suffered as a result of the crimes as defined in this EU Directive.

Data collection and research In order to monitor and assess the phenomenon of sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children, data collection is at the heart of the matter. The new rules therefore require Member States to establish a system for collecting, developing, producing and publishing statistics on the crimes.
The statistics that Member States must collect include the annual number of reported crimes, convictions for the crimes and the annual number of persons prosecuted and convicted for the crimes in question.
Next steps
On the basis of the general approach agreed today, the Council will be able to enter into negotiations with the European Parliament. The Parliament has not yet determined its position.
Once adopted, national governments will have to adapt their criminal laws to bring them into line with the revised EU Directive.

The current EU rules on child sexual abuse and exploitation were agreed in 2011. An EU study found that the increased presence of children online and technological developments pose challenges for law enforcement and create new possibilities for abuse. The review now on the table for EU lawmakers aims to take these developments into account. This update to the criminal law rules complements a proposal setting out obligations for internet companies to detect, report and remove child sexual abuse material from their services. Negotiations on this proposal are ongoing.