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June 15th, 2021

Lack of action from Liberals on MindGeek/Pornhub hurting women around the world

OTTAWA – This morning, the NDP’s Critic for Ethics, Charlie Angus (Timmins-James Bay), was joined in a press conference with a group of international feminist activists warning that Liberals failure to address the depictions of non-consensual assault on platform like MindGeek/Pornhub has serious implications for exploitation of vulnerable women internationally. They called on Justin Trudeau’s Liberals to recognize their international obligations to protect women in the Global south who are being targeted for sexual violence and exploitation.

“The Liberals have failed to hold companies like MindGeek/Pornhub to their legal obligations regarding child abuse and non-consensual videos of sexual violence.” said Angus. “The implications are global. Why do the Liberals always protect web giants and big corporations to the detriment of everyday people?”

The Liberal government has let victims down by failing to take address serious allegations of abuse being hosted by this massive web giant. This is resulting in widespread exploitation of women and young people. Canadians deserve a government that will fight to protect women from sexual violence and online exploitation. The Liberal government has not shown that they are able or willing to do that.

Vaishnavi Sundar, a feminist activist from India states:

“Wealthy countries are the main consumers of ‘real’ women pornography. Most of the Indian women used on Pornhub don’t even know the videos of their rapes are being sold for profit worldwide.”

Sundar is a writer, filmmaker and women's rights activist from the South of India who has campaigned for women's sex-based rights. She is the country contact for the Women's Human Rights Campaign (WHRC).

“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 MindGeeks porn platforms.” said Dr. Gail Dines, a Professor Emerita of Sociology and Women's Studies. She is the President of Culture Reframed, a non-profit organization dedicated to building resilience and resistance in young people to the harms of online exploitation.

New Democrats will continue to fight so that women girls and vulnerable members of society are protected from exploitation.

Quotes from validators:

“Canada, like France, is a G7 member promoting progressive legislation against sexual exploitation. Responsibility should include discouraging the demand that leads to trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation.” Alyssa Ahrabare (France/Morocco - FR) legal expert, spokeswoman for Osez Le Féminisme! Project Officer of the European Network of Migrant Women and co-covener of its young women’s movement Radical Girlsss.

“Consent is irrelevant in cases of trafficking, and although videos of these women were uploaded on Pornhub, many were consequently killed and disappeared. These women cannot raise their voices against MindGeek” Rita María Hernández (Mexico-ENG) – advocate who has worked for over a decade on frontline services offered to trafficked and prostituted women and girls, especially in the border between Mexico and United States, currently Policy and Advocacy Director at Rescue Freedom International.

“Pornhub promotes a worldwide rape culture, and then profits from repeating male’s violence against women and girls, in unending torture cycles.” Nerea Novo (Spain -ENG) - journalist, data analyst and activist at Feminicidio.net, a civil society observatory on violence against women in Spain specialized in documenting femicides and group sexual assaults in the country.

“Women from countries of the Global South live socioeconomic injustice, armed conflicts, humanitarian emergencies. Pornography production, distribution and consumption are an abuse of power and position of vulnerability” Esohe Aghatise (Nigeria/Italy -ENG) - jurist, women's rights activist and United Nations Expert on Trafficking as well as Executive Director of Associazione Iroko Onlus, which provides services to victims of sexual violence and trafficking in Italy.