The government of Australia will table a landmark bill to legislate the ban on social media for children under the age of 16. It's a similar sentiment that New York wanted to happen: that is protect teens from social media risks by passing a law.
The legislations form that much-needed step toward preventing social media from having deleterious effects on the mental health of young Australians, said Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Thereby, this piece of proposal will likely be debated before Parliament next week and has already led to many discussions among parents, experts, and advocacy groups.
Albanese on Child Safety: 'This is For the Parents'
Speaking to worried parents, Albanese addressed the issue of the government's interest in the safety of children online and declared, "This one is for the mums and dads." Knowing about the psychological conditions that are associated with social media, he said the government would provide support to families by blocking children's access to those sites which could harm them, as per Reuters.
The government will adopt this policy to try and protect younger individuals in Australia; however, the proposed bill will not be implemented for people already online.
There will be no exceptions—they will be granted to minors with parental consent. Social media firms will have the responsibility for enforcing the age check, and there must be evidence that they are actively stopping under-16s from going online.
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Safety Commissioner to Oversee Compliance
The eSafety Commissioner in Australia will enforce these laws, with penalties for the social media companies if they do not comply. Importantly, the law does not target individual users.
The new law will come into effect after the completion of the implementation period, which is 12 months. In addition, the effectiveness of the law will be reviewed after a year.
Experts Believe the Ban Won't Last Forever
Despite the consensus among most experts that social media is harmful to teens, the bill has drawn flak from child rights advocates and psychologists. According to BBC, they would argue that a total ban would only delay the maturation of youth to learn responsible online behavior rather than prepare them for the harsh realities of digital spaces.
Other governments, such as the European Union, have also recently tried to introduce age-restricted access to social media, which has been met with much resistance from tech companies and privacy advocates.
Child Advocacy Group Criticizes Ban's Approach
Australia's Child Rights Taskforce has aired reservations, associating the proposed blanket ban with "too blunt an instrument" to manage a complex issue.
An open letter written and signed by more than 100 academics and multiple civil organizations appealed to the government against restrictions and pressed for instead "safety standards."
The group cited recommendations from the United Nations: proper policies that strike the right balance to ensure safe digital access to children without depriving them of valuable online content.
Protesters Urge Government to Act Swiftly to Save Youths From Socmed
However, grassroots campaigners welcomed the social media ban. They base it on a very urgent need, as "36Months" with more than 125,000 supporters, argued that social media use before age 16 disrupts all critical developmental stages leading up to mental health problems.
According to a presented petition, the group claims that children cannot deal with complex online interactions and that something needs to be done sooner rather than later to curb the effects of too much social media use.
A Call for Wider Education on Digital Literacy
Albanese responded to questions about an education on digital literacy instead, claiming that education alone would do. Leaning on education, he argued, infers a balance between young users and the powerful platforms they interact with every day—an equation he believes does not hold.
