Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 23 April 2024

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth

Ireland's International Obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child: Discussion

Princess Ogumefu:

Everyone is talking about age restrictions. Even with age restrictions, there is an issue. Where I watch all my shows, there is an age restriction of 12. When I click on a movie and start watching, all of a sudden a scene can make me ask whether it is really 12-friendly. We need to second-guess ourselves and ask whether the content is really for people of 12 or 15 and whether it should be for people of 18.

I was around five when I got a phone. The only thing I knew how to operate on it was Bubble Shooter, a game in which you just sent a few balls away and they boomed. Then, of course, as you got older you learned about Snapchat, which has the add button. You find yourself adding away, wondering who you are adding, and then, all of a sudden, a pop-up jumpscare. It is important to really know what you are getting your child into. It is so easy for parents, when they see their children crying, to give them a phone to watch Cocomelon. It is really important to know the dangers. There are advantages and disadvantages.