Osnabrück/Berlin, December 4, 2024 - The International Child Rights Organization Terre des Hommes welcomes the initiative of the Australian government to increase protection for children and adolescents on social media. It takes the 101st Conference of Labor and Social Affairs as an opportunity to point out the urgent need for action in digital child and youth protection in Germany.
"One can certainly argue about whether it is too restrictive to have young people in Australia come into contact with social media from the age of 16," says Joshua Hofert, board spokesman for Terre des Hommes. "In principle, however, we welcome the fact that Australia sets an important sign of the protection of children and adolescents."
With his recently published children's work report , Terre des Hommes pointed out that in Germany children also work in digital space under conditions that are harmful to their development, health and education. The spreading participation of children in digital channels of commercially working family influencers is particularly critical. This represents a billion dollar business in which families often include millions of followers in front of the eyes of their children to make money. Minors are used specifically for commercial purposes, privacy is made visible. Such a staged family life endangers the personal security of children and their mental health. It can cause binding and developmental disorders.
Hamburg has given an important impulse and pleaded for a reform of the Youth Work Protection Act to protect children from exploitation even in digital space. »In our view, the initiative of Hamburg is groundbreaking. On the occasion of today's Labor and Social Ministers' Conference in Hamburg, we ask the Federal Government to initiate a reform of the Youth Labor Protection Act. Germany is lagging behind here - at the expense of children and young people. Clear and verifiable limits are needed for the participation of minors in the channels of family influencers. These have to be developed together with children and adolescents, «says Joshua Hofert.