Interview - Child sex tourism laws advertisements
28 June 2010
Sydney International Airport
Topics: Child sex tourism laws advertisements
BRENDAN O'CONNOR: The reason I'm at Sydney Airport today is to announce the laws that the Gillard Government has introduced to protect children in this country and overseas.
The Gillard Government has an obligation to protect the most vulnerable in our society and children need the protection of strong governments. For that reason we introduced laws to protect children against sexual predators, and for that reason we've introduced laws that will make it a crime, even in this country, for someone to commit an offence against a child overseas.
Today we're launching the advertisements that will be around our airports when people leave our country - leave our country either as a visitor or leave our country for a holiday, or a visit overseas. And today the government is saying to those who may consider offending against children overseas, that we will have now the capacity to prosecute and jail people for sexual offences that occur in other countries. We are working closely with law enforcement agencies overseas, to ensure that if people seek to offend against children, they will be prosecuted here and will be jailed.
There are sentences of up to 25 years in jail for someone who commits a sexual offence against a child overseas. There are also sentences of up to 25 years in jail for being engaged in child pornography, particularly with others in a syndicate ring. And there are penalties of 10 years - up to 10 years jail - for even preparing to commit an offence whilst still in this country.
So the government is making it very clear; we are warning any person who seeks to sexually offend against children overseas, that they will be detected, they will be prosecuted and they will be jailed.
JOURNALIST: And when exactly were the laws introduced?
BRENDAN O'CONNOR: The laws that I introduced into the parliament, were in enacted in April this year. But it's really important that the public understand that those laws now exist, because what we want is to deter - to prevent people committing such offences. If they commit such an offence, if they're detected, they will be prosecuted and jailed. But we are hoping to deter anyone acting in such a horrific, abhorrent way against a child.
As a relatively wealthy country, we have an obligation to protect the interests of children beyond our shores. These laws firstly, were created to protect the interests of children in Australia. But further to that, there are a set of other offences that will ensure we prosecute and jail sexual predators if they commit offences against children, or towards children within the region, or overseas.
So this is a warning for those people who seek to commit such offences and they should of course take heed, because if they engage in such abhorrent behaviour, they will be detected, they will be prosecuted and they will be jailed.
JOURNALIST: And how rife is the problem of Australians committing [illegal] sex acts overseas?
BRENDAN O'CONNOR: Look, people are aware that there are Australians, I'm sad to say - a very few Australians - that would be willing to exploit children in other countries, particularly within our region. People are aware that child sex tourism exists as a problem and a blight on our reputation and as an awful, abhorrent situation for children in our region. And for that reason the Gillard Government believed it was critical that we enact legislation to make it an offence for people to either plan and prepare to commit child sex offences before they leave this country, but also ensure - working with our neighbours in the region - that we prosecute those that commit sexual offences overseas.
