Sex therapists call for legalisation of 'virtual' child porn to 'relieve paedophiles' urges'

Amsterdam hospital sexologists claim allowing perverts to view drawings or computer-generated images of children would 'regulate their desires'

The Netherlands outlawed all sexual representation of children in 2002 as technology made imaginary images too realistic



Two sex therapists have sparked outrage in the Netherlands by calling for 'virtual' child porn to be legalised to relieve the urges of paedophiles.



Amsterdam hospital sexologists Rik van Lunsen and Erik van Beek claim allowing perverts to view drawings or computer-generated images of children would 'regulate their desires'.



The Netherlands outlawed all sexual representation of children in 2002 as technology made imaginary images too realistic.



Controversial: Two sex therapists have sparked outrage in the Netherlands by calling for 'virtual' child porn to be legalised to relieve the urges of paedophiles

Reaction: The comments from the pair who run the sexology department at Amsterdam's Univeristy Hospital have sparked shock on Dutch Internet forums

But Mr Van Beek told the Dutch media:'I think that repressing you fantasies can lead to frustration and ultimately, for some types of paedophile, to a greater likelihood of doing something wrong.

'If you make virtual child pornography under strict government control with a label explaining that no child was abused, you can give paedophiles a way of regulating their sexual urges.'



Horror: The idea of sexualising children has provoked shock and outrage

Mr van Lunsen added:'We don't make enough of a distinction in public debate between 'healthy' paedophiles, people who are not paedosexually active, and delinquent paedosexuals.



'We're not responsible for our thoughts or our fantasies, we're only responsible for one thing - our actions.'

But the comments from the pair who run the sexology department at Amsterdam's Univeristy Hospital have sparked shock on Dutch Internet forums.



Psychotherapist Jules Mulder of the prestigious De Waag clinic said:'The proposal isn't really pertinent and for some people it will certainly increase the likelihood of going through with sexual abuse.



'It would also be very difficult to cover all tastes. Some want photos of naked children, others want children having sex while someone else wants an eight-year-old boy with dark hair and a certain look in his eyes.



'It's not possible to satisfy these different desires with a bit of virtual child pornography.'



Former parliament speaker Gerdi Verbeet added:'It's really not a good idea.



'It would be an enormous responsibility for the government, and it also may not be possible to tell the virtual images from the real.'



A spokesman for the Dutch branch of the Defence for Children International charity said it was opposed to the proposal, adding: 'It's preferable for paedophiles to learn to control themselves in a different way.'

