CAQ youth members pushing for minimum age for accessing social media

By Caroline Plante, The Canadian Press

Quebec must quickly adopt “strict” rules to protect children in the digital age, calling it a “critical issue,” says the youth wing of the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ).

“Children are being left to their own devices,” lamented Aurélie Diep, president of the jeunes caquistes, who testified Monday before the special commission examining screen time for young people.

After sounding the alarm for the first time in May, Diep returned with the proposal to completely ban cell phones in schools and set the minimum age for accessing social media at 16.

She said that both the physical and mental health of young people was deteriorating.

“Social networks (are) highly addictive products, just like cigarettes,” she said. “The companies that design them are stealing young people’s time and part of their youth.”

The young CAQ members propose an age verification mechanism to access social media, similar to the one used by Loto-Québec.

This verification could also be done through a neutral intermediary, explained Alexandre Cadotte, political affairs officer for the youth wing of the CAQ.

Both he and Diep acknowledged on Monday that the measure could be circumvented, but said it was important to take “a first step” and send a strong message to the families concerned.

Because right now, “there’s nothing,” said Diep. “We’ve been left so much in the dark that we need a strict measure that says, ‘OK, something’s happening here,’” she said.

Last May, Diep presented a resolution to the CAQ General Council urging the Legault government to take action to better protect young people.

Premier Legault referred the issue to a special commission, which must submit its final report by May 30.

On Monday, the youth wing of the Quebec Liberal Party (QLP) also spoke out in favour of a minimum age, though without specifying an age.

The young Liberals also recommend creating a specialized tribunal for cyberviolence within the Youth Chamber.

“It would be appropriate to have a specialized judicial body … with the aim of … strengthening legal expertise in the field and making the management of complaints filed more accessible”, they argued.

The overuse of screens by young people is becoming “a major public health problem,” according to the youth wing of the Parti québécois (PQ).

They propose strengthening the Consumer Protection Act to limit access for those under 16 to the pervasive advertising on major platforms.

“There are several harmful advertisements: … those that incite people to spend more time on screens, those proposing purchases, … such as recommendations … from influencers,” reads the brief.

“In a context of identity construction where many teenagers seek the approval of others, social media can represent an unhealthy place where reality is distorted,” it adds.

For its part, the Youth Activist Network of Québec solidaire (QS) pointed out that, at a time when consideration is being given to reducing young people’s screen time, tablets are still compulsory in many high schools.

–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews

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