Lithuania toughens penalties for inciting minors to create pornographic content

Lithuania’s parliament has tightened penalties for crimes against children, introducing prison sentences for those who incite minors to create pornographic material, LRT reports.

The amendment to the Criminal Code, approved unanimously by 77 lawmakers with no abstentions, criminalises the act of encouraging, persuading, or otherwise pressuring a child to produce pornographic content.

Vitalijus Gailius, a member of the Liberal Movement faction and the initiator of the amendment, stated that the rise of digital technologies and social media has led to increasing cases where children are not directly exploited but are actively encouraged to create such material. He argued that these actions are as harmful as other forms of sexual exploitation.

Under the new law, anyone who incites a child to create pornographic content, exploits a child for pornographic production, or profits from such activity faces imprisonment for two to eight years. Gailius noted that the amendment fills a gap in criminal law, as previously, inciting the creation of pornographic content was not explicitly criminalised.