RIO DE JANEIRO – The viewing and procurement of child pornography, including online images of the sexual abuse of children, should be made illegal in all nations, according to a declaration issued at an international congress in Rio de Janeiro.

The declaration, worked out at the third World Congress against Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents, states the viewing and obtaining of such material should be criminalized – in addition to its production, distribution and possession. It also says explicit comic strips and cartoons should be regulated.

About 3,000 people, representing about 140 national governments, international bodies and nongovernmental organizations, attended the four-day congress that ended Friday.

Japan, one of the world’s leading producers of animation, which sometimes contains graphic images, lags behind other nations regarding regulation in child porn. International pressure likely will increase on the government to tighten laws on child porn. For example, simple possession of child pornography in Japan is not illegal.

Representatives at the congress expressed concern at the increasing dissemination of child pornography transcending national borders via the Internet and mobile phones, and identified the need to establish global standards to enable countries to work together to tackle the problem.

In addition to the production and distribution of child pornography – which is unlawful in Japan – the congress demanded that possessing, procuring and viewing of such materials accessible via Web sites be made illegal. Possession is defined as individuals acquiring pornographic material via means such as downloading and storing them on personal computers and other devices.

The congress also called for the regulation of businesses such as Internet providers and mobile phone firms involved in the online distribution of child pornography, so that sites containing illegal images could be reported and removed.


The declaration also urges that cartoons and comic strips depicting children as sexual objects be classified as child pornography.

The nonbinding declaration includes a draft anti-child pornography action plan that it says countries should follow. But because the congress was unable to coordinate the opinions of all participating countries by the end of the conference, specific wording for parts of the draft are yet to be revised and a formal plan will be approved in about one month.

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AP-NY-11-29-08 2007EST