Regulations of Child Pornography – The Impact of European Union Legislation on Amendments of the Polish Criminal Code
Regulations of Child Pornography – The Impact of European Union Legislation on Amendments of the Polish Criminal Code

Summary/Abstract: The aim of this article is to present the development of Polish and EU regulations on child pornography. Four amendments to the Polish Criminal Code, which were passed with the purpose of effecting tools to protect children, are strictly connected with the changes in the EU law – from the Green Paper of 1996 to Directive No 2011/92/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council. The paper presents the current definition of child pornography, the understanding of which has evolved since the 90s. Changes in the EU law and the Polish regulations can be divided into three stages – first attempts at specifying instruments on child protection, widening the scope of the definition of child pornography and stiffening sanctions for child pornography. Amendments to the Polish Criminal Code reflect the actual tendency to adopt more precise tools to prevent children from sexual exploitation. However, it does not lead to desired effects. Child pornography is a growing problem due to the relentless technological development but current regulations in their casuistic form are not a suitable tool to combat sexual exploitation of children.

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