Local experts worried about pornography use by children

Danie van Loggerenberg says parents should monitor carefully what their children watch on the internet

Pornography use leads to an increased chance of teenage pregnancies and behavioral issues.

The Child Protection Hotline has become increasingly concerned about the consumption of online pornographic material among children between the ages of 11 and 13.

Even more worrying is the fact that many children who watch pornography regularly are likely to replicate what they see in real life.

“This is a cause for significant concern as these children are not only underaged but are nowhere near ready to raise kids of their own, should one of them fall pregnant.

“We have just had stats where about 688 nine- and 10-year-olds gave birth in 2021.

“If something is not done soon, we will have far greater cases of teenage pregnancies in the years still to come,” said the managing director at Child Protection Hotline, Danie van Loggerenberg.

Several schools in the Moot area have contacted Child Protection to address this issue.

Their main aim is to find ways to keep children from visiting these sites.

Van Loggerenberg said consumption of this kind of material has led to problematic behavioral changes that disrupt classrooms.

“The disrespect, particularly from boys towards girls in both the classroom and school setup, is at probably the highest rate it has ever been,” he added.

“We have cases of boys touching girls inappropriately and also making rude and inappropriate remarks towards their school teachers.

“Most children have unsupervised access to cellphones and the internet, tempting them to explore advertised sites that are popping up on their day-to-day social media platforms and this is raising the cases of reported behavior at an alarming rate.”

According to Van Loggerenberg, a very concerned mother contacted Child Protection about her son’s excessive use of pornography.

She claimed he watched up to 30 videos per day.

“She asked for assistance as this behavior is far from normal”

“This behavior also influenced how he treated his sister.

“He often made inappropriate remarks and gestures towards her, such as trying to watch her whilst she took a shower,” Van Loggerenberg said.

“This is one of the hundreds of similar reported cases that we receive daily.”

Although the problem is a difficult one to address, Child Protection offers the following advice to parents:

Do not allow your children unrestricted and unsupervised access to the internet.

• As a parent, it is your responsibility to gauge what your children can and cannot view on their cell phones. There are parental safety apps such as Screen Time, Family Link, and Parental Control Kroha, it is advised to use these to help.
• Regularly check your child’s phone to see what apps they are using and what they are googling.
• Make a point to educate your child on what sites not to visit and the reasons for this, and to make them aware that it is a privilege for them to have access to a phone/tablet with access to the internet.
• Parents should not allow children to go to bed with their cellphones and not allow them to access the Wi-Fi or their data after 21:00.
• Parents should also be advised that most children have two cell phones. One for homework and school communication and one for, in most instances, illegal activities and apps that they should not have access to.

Any parent, teacher, or child that either has or knows of someone who has a problem with porn and any other internet or app-related concerns is advised to immediately contact the Moot Child Protection Hotline on 064 604 9254.

Source: Rekord Pretoria