The Thai Criminal Code has expanded to cover three more crimes related to child pornography as of today.
Possessing, sharing or distributing child pornography will now be illegal, reported Asia One.
Offenders face a maximum of five years in jail for possession, seven years for forwarding on material, and up to 10 years for distributing or trading in child sex abuse material.
The new clauses to criminalise child pornography were approved by the National Legislative Assembly in May.
Previously, the possession of child sex abuse material without intent to distribute was not considered a crime in Thailand, according to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
“I congratulate Thailand for committing to child protection and becoming an example for other countries in the region,” said Jeremy Douglas, UNODC regional representative for Southeast Asia and the Pacific .
“The possession [of child pornography] will be interpreted in the same way as the person having illicit drug in possession,” said Surasit Sangviroatjanapat, chief judge of the Office of the President of the Supreme Court.
Surasit added that people downloading child pornographic files onto their devices from social media would also face legal action.
According to a charity, Protection of Children’s Rights Foundation (PCRF), around 13,300 children are medically treated for sexual abuse in Thailand each year.
See the PCRF website, SafeGuardKids.org,for more information on spotting and reporting child sexual abuse and child pornography.
To report child sexual abuse, call the Thai police hotline 1911 or make an online report at ThaiHotline.
Photo: Reuters
