Push for radical changes to Australia’s porn rules as activists call them ‘extremely unsafe’
Australian government urged to regulate ‘harmful’ pornography as cultural education for boys and girls
It may be as simple as asking a question, but many Australians are confused about sexual consent, misunderstood or completely ignored.
A parliamentary committee is examining the inconsistency of consent laws across jurisdictions, the effectiveness of instructions to judges on consent, the impact of existing laws on survivors’ experiences of the justice system and the adequacy of education programs.
Investigative journalist Jess Hill says consent education in schools means nothing if they don’t have guidance on how to respond to victims and perpetrators, particularly those in the same year group.
But Ms Hill also said that improving consent laws and education across the country would make little difference if the government did not regulate pornography.
‘You’ve got almost half of Australians between the ages of nine and 16 who are regularly exposed to porn,’ he said.
‘It is hard to overstate how damaging cultural education is, especially to young boys and men.’
Last May, the NSW government released a statewide campaign on sexual consent with TV ads explaining the changes with the tag line Make No Doubt.
Chanel Contos, founder of Teach us Consent, said young people are learning about sex from pornography.
‘It’s like learning to drive by watching Formula One,’ he said.
‘It’s very unsafe, it’s very dangerous and it’s mainly young women who are victims of metaphorical car accidents.’
One in five Australian women and one in 16 men over the age of 15 will experience or experience sexual violence in their lifetime.
Boys between the ages of 15 and 19 have the highest rate of offending of any age group.
But the number of Australians who believe women lie or exaggerate reports of abuse and rape is the highest of any Western country.
Teach us Consent founder Chanel Contos (pictured) says young people are learning about sex from pornography and it’s ‘extremely dangerous’
Ms Hill advocated for young people to be included and encouraged to talk about sexual violence.
‘There’s a real risk at the moment where, in addressing consent and sexual violence, we resent men by not welcoming them into the conversation, in a way that makes them feel comfortable,’ she said.
The award-winning journalist produced an SBS documentary series called Asking for It, with director Tosca Luby. The committee is a short compilation game from the series.
The purpose of this inquiry was to clarify what consent means, what happens when it is ignored and how all Australians can benefit if messages about consent are delivered clearly and early in life.
Experts featured in the documentary urge children to be introduced to the concept of consent before they learn to read and write in an age-appropriate context.
Consensual consent law explained
Sexual consent is now legally required in NSW, five months after state parliament passed reforms to strengthen protections
Last November, the NSW Parliament passed an amendment that clarifies, modernizes and simplifies consent laws.
The new law defines consent as a free and voluntary agreement that cannot be inferred and involves ongoing, mutual communication.
* Under the new consent law, people can’t get consent from someone because they don’t say no – silence is not consent.
* Consent is considered an ongoing process and a person can change their mind or withdraw consent at any time.
* A person will not be able to consent if they are so intoxicated that they cannot make a choice or refuse.
* Consent can only be given freely and voluntarily, and cannot be coerced or coerced.
* A person consenting to a sexual act does not mean they have consented to others – all acts require consent.
* Consent cannot be given by sleeping or unconscious persons.