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<strong>Child</strong> PornograPhy First report oF the Dutch NatioNal rapporteur
With regard to taking action once victims have been identified by professionals:
– “It is imperative that all groups of professionals who work with children are aware of their responsibility to
identify child abuse and to act immediately if they suspect that child abuse has taken place”. […] “It is important
that every group of professionals who work with children should have a reporting code available to them
as soon as possible”. 174
– In this context, the Gunning Committee recommended the following: “If sexual abuse of children,
within or outside of the day nursery, is suspected, this must result in contact with the authorities that possess
expertise in this area. The AMK is the most obvious one. The Committee does not advocate an obligation to
report issues, but rather a duty to consult the AMK for advice.” 175
To summarise: significant steps have already been taken with regard to the identification of victimisation
resulting from sexual violence against children, and with regard to the appropriate action taken
subsequently by persons in close proximity to potential victims, both in the child’s personal sphere
and in a professional capacity. However, it is important that these actions are continued, and that
the programme of measures is developed further. Unicef has also made the following conclusion:
“Prevention of child abuse can only be achieved if the government, experts and professionals involved take an active
position, and if society as a whole adopts a vigilant attitude.” 176 It should be noted in this regard that sexual
violence against children is increasingly related to ICT, so it is important that those living and working
in close proximity to children also take account of potential indicators of victimisation in the
digital world. 177
Where can ‘identifiers of victims’ report the indicators they have observed?
Victims of sexual violence against children/child pornography can contact organisations such as
Kindertelefoon (§3.3.2.1), anonymously if desired, and Helpwanted.nl (§3.3.2.2) specifically in the case
of online abuse. At the time of writing, the Digivaardig & Digibewust programme (ECP-EPN) is involved in
developing an online ‘reporting button’ for victims of online abuse in conjunction with organisations
including the Hotline Combating <strong>Child</strong> <strong>Pornography</strong> on the Internet and the Kindertelefoon. 178 Further
information can be found in the sub-section on Helpwanted.nl. Individuals in close proximity to victims,
both in the personal sphere and in a professional capacity, who observe indicators of sexual violence
against children/child pornography can contact a variety of organisations. The <strong>Child</strong> Abuse Counselling
and Reporting Centre (AMKs) is the most obvious port of call. 179 We will therefore look at this organisation
in detail in §3.3.2.3. The three aforementioned authorities (Kindertelefoon, Helpwanted.nl and the
AMKs) record the reports that they receive concerning indicators of, amongst other things, sexual vio-
174 Unicef & Defence for <strong>Child</strong>ren, 2011, p.23.
175 Gunning et al., 2011, p.138.
176 Unicef & Defence for <strong>Child</strong>ren, 2011, p.23.
177 Nyman, 2008.
178 Ministry of Security and Justice, First Progress Report 2011 on tackling child pornography, 4 March 2011;
Hotline Combating <strong>Child</strong> <strong>Pornography</strong> on the Internet, 2011; information supplied verbally by ECP-
EPN, 16 May 2011; Digivaardig & Digibewust programme (information received in writing at the request of
BNRM, 17 June 2011).
179 Indicators can also be reported to (or noted by) other authorities, such as the Youth Care Agencies. In
some cases, these authorities subsequently report such indicators to an AMK, but this is certainly not
always the case.