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On July 27, 2018, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held the seventh meeting of the Headquarters for Promotion of Development and Support for Children and Young People at the Prime Minister’s Office.
 
At the meeting, a discussion was held on “The Fourth Basic Plan on Measures for Providing Safe and Secure Internet Use for Young People” (draft).
 
Based on the discussion, the Prime Minister said,
 
“In the face of various issues arising over the safety of children, there is no end to cases where children become victims of crimes through the use of the internet. Last November, there was a tragic incident involving the improper use of social media and other means in Zama City, Kanagawa Prefecture. Over the last few years, in particular, as internet use is increasing among younger population, we have seen rises in crimes and problems, which could be attributable to social media and other causes.
 
In light of such circumstances, we have included in the new Basic Plan on Development of Internet Environment for Young People, new supports for parents, guardians, and families of very young children, the promotion of the further use of filtering, based on the recent amendment to the relevant laws, the expanded supports for the independent efforts of social media businesses and others to prevent harm from the internet. We adults have a duty to protect the safety of children. It is critical that we ensure to put this Basic Plan into action.
 
I ask everyone to exert every effort towards implementing these measures to create an environment in which young people can use the internet safely and securely.”