Every second case involves child pornography

As of July 2024, 1,145 criminal cases were opened under Article 301 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (CCU) “Import, Production, Sale, and Distribution of Pornographic Items,” and 1,198 cases were opened under Article 301-1, which pertains to child pornography.

Let us remind you that the GPU began separating these two articles in its reports in 2022.

Overall, the number of cases involving adult content has been increasing year by year. This year, 27% more cases concerning pornographic content (Article 301 of the CCU) have been opened compared to the entire year of 2023. As a result, for the first time in three years, the number of cases under articles concerning adult content and child pornography (Article 301-1) has equalized. Previously, the number of cases involving child pornography was higher.

This year, 68% of the cases related to adult pornographic content have been submitted to the court. In comparison, during the same period last year, 72.5% of such cases reached the court.

The statistics for child pornography content are less encouraging: only 57% of cases under Article 301-1 have been brought to court this year. In the corresponding period last year, 69% of similar cases were brought to court.

Since the beginning of the year, 21 cases involving adult pornography and 25 cases involving child pornography have been closed.

It is important to note that the state currently lacks a clear understanding of what constitutes “distribution” of pornography, and the article does not distinguish between sharing a personal nude with a partner and distributing commercial sexual content.

Last year, Bill No. 9623 was registered, proposing partial decriminalization of pornography, particularly in the realm of adult content. However, since then, there has been no progress on the bill. Igor Samokhodsky, head of the ICT sector at the Office of Effective Regulation (BRDO), associates this with the reluctance of members of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine’s Committee on Law Enforcement to support decriminalization.

«Decriminalizing adult voluntary pornography will save budgetary funds and provide additional revenues to the state budget through taxes, while also helping to reduce corruption in law enforcement agencies. It will also free up law enforcement time to focus on real crimes, particularly on cases involving the distribution of child pornography», 

— notes Igor Samokhodsky.

It is worth recalling that, according to BRDO estimates, law enforcement officers spent approximately 85,500 working hours on cases under Article 301 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine related to the distribution of pornography in 2021.