Observación (CEACR) - Adopción: 2025, Publicación: 114ª reunión CIT (2026)

Convenio sobre las peores formas de trabajo infantil, 1999 (núm. 182) - Australia (Ratificación : 2006)

Articles 3(b) and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour and penalties. Use, procuring or offering of a child for the production of pornography and for pornographic performances. State legislation. New South Wales (NSW). In its previous comments, the Committee noted that Division 15A of the NSW Crimes Act, 1900, which deals with offences related to child abuse material, applied only to children under 16 years of age. The Committee therefore urged the Government to take the necessary measures to extend the prohibition of using, procuring or offering a child for the production of pornography to all children up to 18 years.

The Committee takes notes of the Government’s indication that: (1) the NSW Government is considering this matter further, including seeking the views of stakeholders about raising the age threshold in Division 15A of the Crimes Act to 18 years; and (2) civil measures to protect children from sexual exploitation exist under section 43(3) of the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 (which gives power to enforcement authorities to enter premises to remove, without warrant, a child (under 16) or young person (under 18), if they suspect on reasonable grounds that the child or young person has been on any premises where prostitution or acts of child exploitation in prostitution take place, or has been exploited in prostitution or for the production of child abuse material).

While the Committee notes the possibility to remove children from situations where acts of commercial sexual exploitation take place or where they are exploited for commercial sexual exploitation purposes, it notes that the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act, 1998, only provides for civil measures to protect children in these situations. Further, the Committee notes with regret that the NSW Crimes Act continues to only prohibit the use, procuring or offering of a child for the production of child abuse material for those aged up to 16 years. In this regard, it recalls that, by virtue of Articles 3(b) and 7(1) of the Convention, Member States shall take immediate and effective measures to prohibit the use, procuring or offering of all children under the age of 18 years for the production of pornography and for pornographic performances, including through the provision and application of penal sanctions. Therefore, the Committee once again urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that the NSW Crimes Act, 1900, is amended with a view to specifically extending this prohibition for all children up to 18 years. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on: (i) any progress reached in this regard; and (ii) the application in practice of section 43(3) of the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act, 1998, by indicating the number of children under the age of 18 years who were removed from situations of commercial sexual exploitation in application of this provision.