NDP, advocates, call for action against exploitative content on porn sites; report heading to parliament

Canada has laws that would hold companies accountable for allowing non-consensual sexual content on their platforms, but the government needs to put them into action, according to Charlie Angus, MP for Timmins-James Bay and the NDP party’s critic for ethics. Angus held a press conference Tuesday to call out what he said is a lack of action by the Liberal government to address depictions of non-consensual assault on platforms such as MindGeek’s Pornhub, affecting victims within and outside of Canada. The House of Commons’ Ethics Committee has been looking into how to hold companies such as MindGeek accountable as they are accused of hosting illegal content. Angus said the committee’s report on its findings will be headed to Parliament by the end of this week. “What we learned in the study of Pornhub was very shocking. The proliferation of aggressive sexual assault, non-consensual sexual videos assaulting women and children really raises serious questions,” said Angus. “For us, what I think was more shocking has been the failure of the Canadian government and the RCMP to apply the Canadian laws that exist to hold tech giants like Pornhub to account.” When asked during the conference Tuesday for details on the report, Angus said he could not share anything until it is presented to Parliament, but that the committee worked across party lines and it includes some vigorous recommendations. Angus claimed a big concern is a lack of movement on Pornhub’s part for sharing allegations of abusive content on its platform with the police, in line with mandatory reporting requirements. “If Pornhub had followed the law from the beginning we may not be in that situation today, but they were not following the mandatory reporting laws and the RCMP seem to be content to let them do this on a voluntary basis.” He said Canada does have some very robust legislation, “we just don’t seem to have any political willingness to use it,” and that he was “shocked” to learn that the RCMP “treats Pornhub/Mindgeek, they say, as a partner. A private-sector partner to work with them on identifying pornography.” “But we see with the RCMP an unwillingness to step forward. The Liberal government has even refused to say whether they believe Mindgeek is a Canadian company, even though they’re headquartered in Montreal.” During its meetings on the matter, Ethics Committee members heard from a variety of witnesses with experience related to advocacy on potential implications on consensual sex work and justice, including Minister of Justice and Attorney General David Lametti, who said in order for the federal government to best deal with sexual exploitation online, it will have to continue working on bolstering effective international cooperation. Lametti said during an appearance before the committee in April that Canada’s laws on sexual exploitation of citizens are “fairly exhaustive and clear.” “The challenge is the international context. It’s a matter of strengthening the enforcement of the law and to conduct investigations which are often international in scope, so we’re talking collaboration with other countries and other police forces throughout the world,” he said. Angus said Tuesday there “obviously” needs to be an international approach, “but I think Mr. Lametti just needs to read the law,” said Angus. “He talks about how they’re not sure where Pornhub’s servers are.” “The law doesn’t talk about servers, it talks about a service. If you’re providing a service and you’re breaking the law in terms of promoting abusive content, in Canada, the law applies.” During that same meeting in April, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Bill Blair said “it’s important to acknowledge the complexities and jurisdictional challenges involved in what is often a borderless crime.” “Perpetrators and victims can be located anywhere in the world, and images of child sexual abuse and exploitation can be shared on platforms that may be headquartered in one country but legally registered in another with servers in yet a third and different country,” Blair said. “This affects the authority and challenges the ability of Canadian law enforcement agencies to investigate and the application of Canadian laws.” Tuesday’s press conference included speakers from France, Mexico, Spain, Nigeria, and India calling for government action holding platforms such as Pornhub accountable. Angus said the committee had more than 600 organizations and survivors reach out to it. “Canada has become a gross human rights violator of women and girls worldwide, as it fails to prevent and prosecute the occurrence of wrongful acts on MindGeek’s porn platforms.” said Dr. Gail Dines, a professor emerita of sociology and women's studies with Wheelock College in Boston and president of Culture Reframed, a non-profit organization dedicated to building resilience and resistance in young people to the harms of online exploitation. Angus also addressed Tuesday a proposed anti-harm regulator currently in discussion as part of forthcoming legislation from Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault, which could potentially deal with content exploiting children and the non-consensual sharing of intimate images as well as issues such as hate speech, terrorism and violent content. “God help the women of the world if they’re relying on Minister Guilbeault to protect them. Where is his bill? He’s done nothing, this government has done nothing. It’s not acceptable,” said Angus. “We have laws, apply the laws, do the right thing. Don’t give us this run around that down the road you’re going to do something. Do it now. We have the laws, and this is why I’m very frustrated with the government’s lack of action.” Guilbeault said when he appeared before the committee earlier this month that the creation of an online harms regulator has been delayed by the Conservative Party’s “obstruction” of Bill C-10, the revised Broadcasting Act. “Unfortunately, the systemic obstruction of the Conservative party regarding Bill C-10 has prevented me from doing so. But I am still hoping to table this bill as soon as possible,” Guilbeault told the committee. Conservative MP Shannon Stubbs, who had asked why it was delayed, said the minister’s response was a “ridiculous and partisan evasion.” -- Reporting by Hannah Daley at hdaley@thewirereport.ca and editing by Jenna Cocullo a jcocullo@thewirereport.ca

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