INTERNATIONAL LEGAL PROTECTION OF CHILDREN AGAINST ONLINE SEXUAL EXPLOITATION IN THE DIGITAL ERA AND ENFORCEMENT IMPLICATIONS
Keywords:
Child Protection, Online Child Sexual Exploitation, International Law, Children’s Rights, Legal EnforcemenAbstract
The rapid expansion of digital technologies has significantly transformed the ways in which children interact, learn, and communicate. At the same time, digital environments have increasingly facilitated various forms of online child sexual exploitation, creating serious legal and human rights concerns at the international level. Online child sexual exploitation presents unique challenges due to its transnational nature, the anonymity of perpetrators, and the rapid dissemination of harmful digital content, including simulated or fictional material involving children.This article examines international legal protection for children against online sexual exploitation in the digital era, with particular attention to the implications for legal enforcement. Employing a normative legal research method, the study analyzes key international legal instruments, particularly the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the Optional Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography (OPSC). The analysis focuses on how these instruments establish state obligations to prevent, prohibit, and respond to online sexual exploitation involving children, including content disseminated through digital platforms. The study finds that while the CRC and OPSC provide a comprehensive normative foundation for child protection, effective enforcement in digital spaces requires adaptive legal responses that address technological developments, cross-border jurisdictional issues, and platform-based dissemination of exploitative content. The article argues that strengthening international cooperation, enhancing state responsibility, and integrating preventive and enforcement-oriented measures are essential to ensuring meaningful protection of children from online sexual exploitation in the digital era.
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