Public Law Studies Quarterly

Protection of Children's Rights in the Cyberspace from the Perspective ‎of the United Nations System and Iranian Law

Document Type : Article

Authors

Mohsen Nikbin 1
Amin Raoufi 2

1 Assistant Prof., Department of Public and International Law, Faculty of Law, University of Tehran ‎‎(Farabi Campus), Qom, Iran‎

2 M.A. in International Law, Faculty of Law, University of Qom, Qom, Iran

https://doi.org/10.22059/jplsq.2023.354245.3256
Abstract
The increasing development of communication technologies and their penetration into various layers of human life, despite creating numerous opportunities and conveniences, has also posed threats. The vulnerability of children compared to other groups in society makes the need for special mechanisms to protect their rights in cyberspace an unavoidable issue. A careful examination of United Nations documents indicates that, on one hand, most of them are not considered binding, and on the other hand, the supportive mechanisms outlined in these documents lack sufficient deterrence. At the domestic level, the efforts of policymaking institutions have often resulted in legislation that addresses the issue very generally and has refrained from identifying instances of violations of children's rights in cyberspace and providing legal solutions to counter them. The main question of this research is: what are the necessary conditions for effective legislation on this issue? This article, using a descriptive-analytical method, concludes that the proposed solution to this challenge is the establishment of a unified legal framework that identifies factors threatening children's security in cyberspace and predicts appropriate and effective measures to address them based on the nature of the harm.

Keywords

child's right
cyberspace
‎united nations system
‎national law
good ‎legislation.‎
Subjects

  1. English

    1. Book
    2. Kendall, V., & Funkm, M. (2012). Child, Exploitation and Trafficking: Examining the Global Challenges and U.S. Responses, Rowman and Littlefield Publishers.

     

    1. Article
    2. Badźmirowska-Masłowska, Katarzyna (2019). “Child protection in cyberspace”. Cybersecurity and Law (1), 213-224.
    3. Sahoo, A. (2015). “CHILDREN’S RIGHTS IN THE CYBERSPACE”. International Journal of Research and Analysis, (4), 1-10.
    4. Stadniczeńko, D. (2022). “Children’s Rights in the Digital Environment Under the Convention on the Rights of the Child”. Teka Komisji Prawniczej PAN Oddział W Lublinie, (15), 321–331.
    5. Tobin, J. (2011). "Courts and Construction of Childhood: A New Way of Thinking" In: Law and Childhood Studies. Edited by Freeman, M.F.B.A., Oxford University Press, 56-59.

     

    1. Documents
    2. A/HRC/RES/31/7 (2016). Rights of the Child: Information and Communications Technologies and Child Sexual Exploitation.
    3. Convention on the Rights of Child (1989).
    4. CRC/C/GC/13 (2011). The right of the child to freedom from all forms of violence.
    5. CRC/C/GC/16 (2013). State obligations regarding the impact of the business sector on children's rights.
    6. CRC/C/GC/25 (2021). Children's rights in relation to the digital environment.
    7. Declaration on the Rights of the Child (1959).
    8. E/CN.15/2019/L.3/Rev.1 (2019). CCPCJ recommendation to the ECOSOC to approve the resolution on Countering child sexual exploitation and sexual abuse online.
    9. E/RES/1992/22 (1992). Report on the 48th session of the Commission on the human rights.
    10. E/RES/2011/33 (2011). Prevention, protection and international cooperation against the use of new information technologies to abuse and/or exploit children.
    11. Europol Report (2019). International collaboration via Europol leads to tentative identification of victims of child abuse.
    12. International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966).
    13. International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966).
    14. ITU Concept Note (2020). Creating a Safe and Prosperous Cyberspace for Children.
    15. ITU Guidelines on Child Online Protection (2020).
    16. Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography (2000).
    17. Resolution No. 175 (Rev. Bucharest, 2022) of the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference. Telecommunication/ICT accessibility for persons with disabilities and persons with specific needs.
    18. Resolution No. 179 (Rev. Bucharest, 2022) of the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference. ITU's role in child online protection.
    19. Resolution No. 67 (Rev. Kigali, 2022) of the World Telecommunication Development Conference. The role of the ITU Telecommunication Development Sector (ITU-D) in child online protection.
    20. Resolution No. 67-1 (Rev. Sharm el-sheikh, 2019) of the ITU Radiocommunication Assembly. Telecommunication/Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for persons with disabilities and persons with specific needs.
    21. UNICEF Industry Toolkit on Children Online Privacy and Freedom of Expression (2018).
    22. Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948).

     

    References in Persian:

    1. Books
    2. Soltani, N. (2021). Cyber and the United Nations, Tehran, Cyberspace Research Institute Publications (In Persian).
    3. Ghari Seyed Fatemi, S.M. (2017). Human Rights in the Contemporary World: Analytical Essays on Rights and Liberties. Tehran: Negah-e Moaser Publications (In Persian).
    4. IRIB Political Research Department (2011). An overview of the phenomenon of using children in cyberspace for advertising; Reasons, Consequences and Solutions. Tehran: IRIB Political Research Department (In Persian).

     

    1. B) Articles
    2. Jafari, M.H, & Parsa, E. (2019). Prohibition of Child Pornography in the Context of International and Domestic Documents. Child Rights Journal, (1), 155-166 (In Persian).
    3. Hosseini Akbarnezhad, H., & Javaheri Arasteh, M. (2020). Criminal Protection of Children against Online Abuses in Iran and UK Regulations and International Documents. Journal of Legal Research, (44), 107-130 (In Persian).
    4. Faramarziani et al. (2021). Providing a Model of Protecting Children's Privacy in Cyberspace. Communication Research Quarterly, (106), 9-30 (In Persian).

     

    1. C) Documents
    2. Constitution of the National Center for Cyberspace (2012) (In Persian).
    3. Executive Bylaw of Article 6 of the Children and Adolescents Protection Act (2021) (In Persian).
    4. Executive Bylaw on Duties and Method of Work of the Communications Regulatory Commission (2004) (In Persian).
    5. Goals, Position and Duties of the Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution (1997) (In Persian).
    6. Supporting Document and Action Plan on Development of Cyberspace Services for Children and Adolescents (2017) (In Persian).
    7. Protection of Children and Adolescents in Cyberspace Act (2021) (In Persian).
    8. National Act on the Children and Adolescents' Rights (2018) (In Persian).
    9. Electronic Commerce Act (2003) (In Persian).
    10. Computer Crimes Act (2009) (In Persian).
    11. Children and Adolescents Protection Act (2020) (In Persian).
    12. Act on the Method of Punishment of Persons who Engage in Unauthorized Activities in Audiovisual Affairs (2007) (In Persian).
    13. Decision No. 2 of the 203rd Meeting of the Communications Regulatory Commission (2014) (In Persian).
    14. Citizens' Rights Charter (2016) (In Persian).
    15. R. of Iran Cultural Engineering Roadmap (2014) (In Persian).
Public Law Studies Quarterly
Volume 55, Issue 1 - Serial Number 41
Spring 2025
Spring 2025
Pages 697-718

  • Receive Date 23 January 2023
  • Revise Date 14 August 2023
  • Accept Date 10 September 2023

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