Emine Erdoğan called for shared responsibility to protect children from risks posed by digital systems, saying this obligation could not be left solely to parents.
Erdoğan, the wife of Türkiye’s President, spoke at an event on children and digital systems held in New York as part of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly. The program was organized in cooperation with the Ministry of Family and Social Services, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Office of the Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General on Violence against Children.
Children are becoming targets of digital systems
Erdoğan said children were being left alone in the face of behavioral experts, designers and neuroscientists focused on keeping them in front of screens. She said this situation was turning children into the target audience of digital systems.
Referring to research on the harms of screen exposure, Erdoğan said these harms included the age at which psychiatric medication is used falling to as low as five, the emergence of addictive behaviors and screen use causing biological effects in children’s brains.
Call for global standards and accountability
Erdoğan said digital platforms should not be viewed entirely as a threat and that people should not oppose technology. She called for action against systems that prioritize profit and engagement over children’s interests.
Erdoğan said protecting children in the digital environment could not be limited to digital literacy, parental supervision or efforts to reduce screen time. She said reducing screen time should not be viewed solely as a matter of individual will.
Erdoğan called for common global standards instead of separate practices in different countries and urged the establishment of regular monitoring and reporting mechanisms. She called for stronger accountability for technology companies and digital platforms and urged them to share equally in the responsibility of protecting children.
Queen Mathilde of Belgium, as well as UNICEF and United Nations representatives and the spouses of some leaders, also spoke at the event.
