Reporting a suspected case of child sexual abuse and exploitation can be difficult. You don’t want to wrongly accuse anyone. But you also don’t want a child to continue being abused. The child’s best interests are paramount. A child is vulnerable and depends on the protection of the adults around them. That’s why it’s important to take every suspicion seriously, because your report can make all the difference for a child. Your report could be the beginning of the end of sexual abuse.

The main task of the police is to find out the truth. This means that it is first necessary to find out whether the information shared with the police is actually correct. This means that a report does not immediately result in an arrest or a house search. Filing a Don’t Look Away report is not the same as filing a police report. Filing a police report of child sexual abuse abroad with literally means: “I am requesting prosecution.” This is not the case when filing a Don’t Look Away report.

Investigations into reports about Dutch people in suspicious situations with children abroad can therefore lead to different outcomes. One of those outcomes is that there is insufficient evidence to proceed an investigation (at that time). This does not mean that the police does nothing with the report. The information is filed in police systems, so that this information may come in handy for any future reports. Therefore, be as specific and comprehensive as possible in describing suspicious situations and upload – if possible and safely – a photo or video of the situation on the reporting site.

If in doubt, you can first discuss the situation with an employee of the hotline. Please contact us during office hours by calling: +31 – (0)71 – 516 09 80 or send an e-mail to: info@dontlookaway.nl