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Implementation
Within the scope of detection, BNRM carried out research into the extent to which the <strong>Child</strong> Abuse
Counselling and Reporting Centres included the aspect of child pornography as part of their role in
detection. It emerged that child pornography was still barely recognised as an additional dimension of
being a victim of child abuse, even within <strong>Child</strong> Abuse Counselling and Reporting Centres. 722 As far as
the provision of assistance is concerned, BNRM spoke with a number of key figures and analysed a number
of programmes. It emerged, for example, that the provision of assistance is not being put forward
explicitly in the context of child pornography in the initiatives described above. In its recommendations
on <strong>Child</strong> Abuse, the Health Council of the Netherlands did not refer to either a digital component or to
an aspect relating to child pornography within the context of providing assistance to victims of sexual
abuse. 723 <strong>Child</strong> pornography is not listed in the plans for the Multi-disciplinary Centre for <strong>Child</strong> Abuse
in Friesland. 724 The Centre for Sexual Violence that is currently being established in Utrecht considers
child abuse images to be an important topic, when asked, but will, in the first instance, focus solely on
providing first-line assistance to victims of sexual abuse, without involving a possible aspect relating
to child pornography in that regard. 725 There is no evidence of treatment of cases involving victims of
child pornography on the website of the specialised institutions offering assistance that participate in
the Dual-track or Multiple-track Team in Amsterdam. 726
The websites of certain key organisations such as the <strong>Child</strong> Care and Protection Board and the Municipal
Health Service devote just as little attention to child pornography. The vision document produced
by the Netherlands Institute for Psychological Care and Addiction Care for the Netherlands Institute
for Psychological Care and Addiction Care for Youths 727 also fails to name child abuse material. The
head from one of the Sexual Abuse teams from the Utrecht regional police force who was interviewed
indicated that his team was, in most cases, involved with one-off experiences of sexual abuse; the few
cases involving child abuse material with a victim had usually been related to cases of incest, without
material having been distributed, or to accusations of the possession of child abuse images within the
scope of divorce problems. He reported that his team considers the production of child abuse material
to be subsidiary to the abuse, and also primarily considers the victim as being a victim of the sexual offence.
According to the head of the sexual abuse team, the referral for assistance, and also the assistance
itself, are focused on this. 728
Recently, research in the form of an audit was carried out in Germany 729 , in which professionals in
the provision of assistance to victims of sexual abuse were asked about their experiences with child
pornography. In their responses, the respondents only drew on their own actual experience with child
pornography to a limited extent: a substantial part of the findings are based on estimations derived
from their expertise. Despite this limitation, this research project did produce valuable information.
722 See §3.3.2.3.
723 The Health Council of the Netherlands, 2011, p.68.
724 Project: ‘het mishandelde kind central stellen’ [placing the focus on the abused child], Fier Fryslân, 2011.
725 Written information, 27 June 2011.
726 www.amsta.nl, www.debascule.com, www.meeaz.nl, www.puntp.nl (viewed 22 August 2011).
727 Netherlands Institute for Psychological Care and Addiction Care, 2011.
728 Verbal information (provided by the head of one of the Sexual abuse teams from the Utrecht regional
police force) 18 May 2011.
729 Von Weiler et al., 2010.
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