Child protection first in porn battle

I read with interest the piece by Matt Cooper ‘We need to put our children first and filter internet pornography’ (Aug 23) in which he raised points about the impact access to harmful pornography can have on children and questioned why Ireland is not legitimately investigating ways to protect children from such materials, as has been happening in recent times in the UK.

The ISPCC knows only too well the negative impact viewing such material can have on children. Some young people who have called our Childline service to talk about this have reported seeing pornographic material by accident, when searching for something else, while others through peer pressure have felt forced to watch graphic and disturbing scenes which left them feeling uneasy, frightened and confused.

During their early teen years young people are malleable and are developing their sense of self. They are not emotionally mature enough to decipher content that is both graphic and inappropriate for their age.

They must not be left to try to interpret this alone.

As parents we have a central role to play in this by keeping communication open with our young people, but Government and ISPs owe it to society and the young people within it to investigate how best to safeguard them from the damaging impact such viewing can have.

The final question posed in Matt Cooper’s piece is one that should resonate with us all: “Is it not better to try to do something honourably than do nothing at all?”

This issue deserves more than a lukewarm response from our decision makers. They must endeavour to understand how and why filtering and other relevant approaches can ensure better online safety for children in Ireland.

The world is filled with sophisticated technology and evolved intelligent minds working on all manner of tools and software. This is something that can be tackled and must be tackled.

Ashley Balbirnie,

Chief executive,

ISPCC,

29 Lower Baggot Street,

Dublin 2