The French Senate unanimously adopted a motion for a resolution calling “to make the fight against pornographic violence a public policy priority”.
The motion presented by Laurence Rossignol (Socialist party, PS), Annick Billon (Centrist), Laurence Cohen (Communist) and Alexandra Borchio Fontimp (Republican, LR), is the most co-signed Senate text of the 5th Republic, with 255 signatures.
But itt is not binding on the government.
Fight against pornographic violence and protection of minors
The motion calls for “a strengthening of the criminal prosecution, the staffing and material resources available to investigative services and judges in order to combat pornographic violence and prevent the distribution of illicit violent content”.
The text urges the government “to explore all fiscal measures to tax the activity of the pornographic industry and the billions of euros in profits it generates each year”, and proposes that any sexual violence committed in a pornographic context should be deemed an offence of incitement to rape or sexual assault.
It also asks for the law requiring pornographic sites to set up an age control system for their visitors, to be enforced, blocking those who do not comply, in order to protect minors.
Furthermore, senators underlined the need to make effective the three annual sessions of education on emotional and sexual life in primary and secondary education, provided for by law since 2001, and to recruit health professionals to intervene in this area.
“We call on the government to take up the recommendations of the Senate and to do everything possible to put an end to the systemic violence caused by the practices of this industry”, concludes the motion.
French evangelicals “welcome the motion”
A few days prior to the adoption of the resolution, the National Council of Evangelicals in France (CNEF) issued a statement encouraging senators and other parliamentarians “to take up this subject in order to continue their efforts to combat pornographic violence”.
“Pornographic violence is a distortion of sexuality as the Bible encourages it: healthy and respectful between a consenting man and a woman who are committed to each other. The human exploitation that results from the pornography industry is an assault on human rights and dignity”, stressed the CNEF.
According to evangelical entity representing most free evangelical churches and organisation in France, “the measures in the motion for a resolution seem to us to be relevant: they constitute an urgent first step in the face of an inescapable challenge for our society”.
“Evangelical Protestants welcome the motion for a resolution calling for the fight against pornographic violence”, said communications director of the CNEF, Romain Choisnet, on Twitter.
Les protestants évangéliques se réjouissent de la proposition de résolution appelant à faire de la lutte contre les violences pornographiques.@Senat https://t.co/Rx8VRAKXZR— Romain CHOISNET (@comcnef) March 1, 2023
Originally published on The Evangelical Focus
(c) Evangelical Focus, used with permission
