Protection from online predators

REPORTS show that Papua New Guinea has seen a rapid increase in the use of the internet and digital technologies since the start of the new millennium.
From 2000 to 2015, internet penetration increased from 135,000 to 625,874 or 2.8 to 9.4 per cent of the total population.
A presentation last week by the National Information Communication and Technology Authority (Nicta) at a workshop in Port Moresby showed that there are 906,696 mobile users with a mobile penetration rate of 45 per cent and an internet penetration rate of 1.3 per cent.
And that is why combating online sexual exploitation of children and keeping them safe require collaborative actions from the government, businesses, law enforcement agencies and civil society organisations
United Nations International Children’s Fund (Unicef) resident representative Vathinee Jitjaturunt highlighted during the workshop that children were easily exposed to a number of risks online by using internet.
“When it comes to protecting children’s rights online, government, business communities and civil societies have to strike a balance between children’s right to protection from harm with children’s right to access information and express their views as well as privacy,” she said.
The workshop was focused on implementation of measures to address online sexual abuse and exploitation of children.
Papua New Guinea’s Chief Censor Steven Mala told the workshop that prior to the introduction of information and communication technologies in the country, abuse on children were physical and general by their immediate families on disciplinary grounds.
Over the years, these trends have been outlawed and new ICT have profoundly changed the way today’s young people interact and participate with others around them.
“The proliferation of internet access points, mobile technology and growing array of internet devices combined with the immense resources to be found in cyber space provide children and young people with unprecedented opportunities to learn, share and communicate,” Mala said.
The benefits of ICT are many but children are still exposed to violent and appalling images which risk misleading their attitudes and beahviour.
“Children are the most vulnerable group, thus it is our responsibility as government, policy makers, industry players and most importantly parents to ensure our children are safe when online,” Mala said.
Since 2014, the Censorship Office has been working on a concept to filter anything and everything that comes through the internet thus intended to protect children online.
Internet filtering is one measure the Censorship Office believes will minimize issues like pornography, cyber bullying, money laundering, sex trade and cybercrime.
The internet filtering system will ensure a clean feed of information was accessed by end users especially children who interact on the internet.
And it is challenging finding an appropriate balance between ensuring that our children have access to ICT and at the same time ensuring that they are protected from violence, abuse and exploitation while using ICT.
Awareness programmes have be carried out in educating parents and children about the online risks.
The Education Department is also concerned with the input of ICT in schools.
Twenty years ago, student’s researches were done through encyclopaedias and library but in this era; all these are done through the ease of internet; both at home and in school.
ICT is now a compulsory subject thought in secondary schools while some schools introduce the subject also to students at the primary level.
Guidance and counselling division director Lepapa Kopi said the department has been proactive in terms of reforms and global changes taught in all schools across the country.
Just last week, Jubilee Secondary School students received 707 tablets under NCD Governor Powes Parkop’s tablet roll-out initiative.
Students’ representative Tracy Kabewa challenged her fellow students to take responsibility of the usage of tablets.
Tablets, laptops and mobile enhance our children’s learning; give the world to their fingertips meaning anything that is happening around the world and all the information they need about any subjects; but the challenge in on parents and teachers to ensure the students use such devices for its intended purpose.
Internet education needs to be encouraged and taught in the education curriculum so students can understand the risks they may be exposed to when online.