Arabic version: بليبرسك تؤيد مراجعة حظر الخنق في المواد الإباحية

According to ABC News, Social Services Minister Tanya Plibersek says Australia should “very seriously” consider banning depictions of strangulation or suffocation in pornography, following a UK law that made possessing or publishing such material a criminal offence last year.

Calls for action have intensified after the death of a 16-year-old Sydney girl, understood to be treated as linked to a suspected sexual choking act. Plibersek cited a 2024 study finding that 57 per cent of people aged 18 to 35 had experienced strangulation in the bedroom.

“There is something wrong with a situation where 60 per cent of young people say they’ve experienced strangulation,” Plibersek told Insiders. She said non-fatal strangulation could cause long-term brain damage or aneurysms, adding that there was “no safe way to strangle someone”.

NSW Liberal leader Kellie Sloane has written to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese urging an immediate ban. She said pornography depicting conduct capable of causing brain injury, unconsciousness or death should not be regarded as ordinary adult entertainment, and warned young people were encountering sexual violence online without understanding its dangers.

Plibersek also acknowledged concerns about social media algorithms, as the government consults on its proposed digital duty of care bill. Teach Us Consent founder Chanel Contos has called for algorithms to be opt-in, while the government is considering a moratorium on smart-glasses imports pending stronger privacy protections.