The European Parliament on Wednesday voted overwhelmingly for a five-year program aiming to protect children from illegal and harmful contents on the Internet.
The 55-million-euro (71 million U. S. dollar) program envisages campaigns to raise public awareness among children, parents and teachers, and the establishment of national contact points for reporting illegal online content and harmful conduct.
A knowledge base on the use of new technologies and related risks will also be created, bringing together researchers engaged in online child safety at European Union (EU) level.
The European Commission, which proposed the program in February, welcomed the positive vote in the European Parliament.
"Today's children and teenagers face new challenges when they use Web 2.0 services. The EU will coordinate actions to empower children and protect them," said Viviane Reding, EU Commissioner for Information Society and Media.
The new program, which will run between 2009 and 2013, builds on the success of the previous Safer Internet program started in 2005. It is now expected to be approved by the Council of ministers before the end of 2008.
Source:Xinhua
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