CANBERRA, Australia – The Australian Labor government led by Prime Minister Albanese recently announced its intention to introduce legislation this year “to enforce a minimum age for access to social media and other relevant digital platforms.”
“A Commonwealth-led approach to this important social issue will ensure Australian children are better protected from online harm and parents and caregivers are supported,” the Prime Minister’s office said. said through a statement.
The federal government said the legislation would be “informed by collaboration with states and territories through National Cabinet” and “draw on recent work by former Chief Justice Robert French.”
The latest statement refers to a comprehensive report prepared by French for the South Australian Premier earlier this year and released this month, a 277-page report. document entitled “Report of the Independent Legal Inquiry into Banning Children’s Access to Social Media.”
The French report includes several mentions of adult content, justifying the government’s so-called “age guarantee” proposals in terms of the country’s existing protections for freedom of expression.
Australia, a Commonwealth country with a legal system modeled on that of its former colonial power Britain, has no blanket U.S. First Amendment protections.
The French report mentions “pornography” and “violent content” in the same way as “unwanted, inappropriate content” for teenagers.
It also vaguely defines “sexualization” of minors as “the imposition of adult models of sexual behavior and sexuality” on minors at “developmentally inappropriate stages and contrary to the healthy development of sexuality.”
The report continues: “The use of sexualized images can occur in popular media. A virtually unlimited amount of pornography on the Internet means that children and adolescents have easier access to more varied, explicit and sometimes violent, unsafe and non-consensual sexual content. Exposure is very likely.”
The French report also cites a report from the Australian Institute of Family Studies, which claims that “exposure to mainstream online pornography could have a range of negative effects.”
The document also outlines how the Online Safety Act 2021 includes two forms of “illegal and restricted online content” as “the specific types of online harm that the eSafety Commissioner regulates through its complaints and takedown schemes.”
The OSA has essentially appointed the eSafety Commissioner as Australia’s de facto online censor. Currently the position is held by unelected US-Australian former technology executive Julie Inman Grant, who has acknowledged having conversations with US-based, religiously inspired lobby NCOSE – formerly Morality in Media – and even appearing on an NCOSE podcast of the Coalition to End Sexual Exploitation Summit in July 2021, shortly after the Australian Parliament passed the OSA.
The two categories for “illegal and restricted online content,” the French report notes, are “class 1 material” (CSAM and pro-terrorism content) and “class 2 material,” which includes “material that may be inappropriate is for children, like pornography. .”
Prime Minister Albanese justified the proposal by claiming that “we know that social media causes social harm and takes children away from real friends and real experiences. Australian young people deserve better and I support them and all Australian parents in protecting our children. The safety and mental and physical health of our young people comes first. We are supporting parents and keeping children safe by taking this action because enough is enough.”
Main image: Former Chief Justice of Australia Robert French