Call to jail parents who break video game age limits
By GREER MCDONALD - The Dominion Post


Parents who give their underage children access to violent video games should be prosecuted to serve as "shock value" to other families, says chief censor Bill Hastings.

Laws around video games were "an even stricter regime than alcohol", because if an adult gives a child aged under 18 access to a restricted video game even in their own home they are breaking the law, he said.

Mr Hastings told The Dominion Post yesterday that if someone was caught knowingly allowing a child access to restricted video games such as the R-18 Grand Theft Auto series they could be punished by up to three months' imprisonment or a fine of up to $10,000.

"They might think the offence is silly, but it ain't".

No-one had yet been prosecuted under the law, but Mr Hastings said there could be merit in a parent being charged.

"That's what the law says, but . . . you're not going to have police officers in every bedroom ... There would certainly be some shock value to prosecuting a parent who gives their under-18 child access to a restricted game. It would send out a message that the enforcement agency means business."

Mr Hastings said studies had shown that repeated exposure to violence and sexual violence had an adverse effect on attitude, and it was important that parents realised some games were created for adults not children.

"I think the word 'game' can mislead people for sure. It's not checkers.

"For the first time in history, kids are more savvy with technology than parents ... parents need to get up to speed on the digital divide. They need to look at what their kids are playing and doing," he said.

"The fear of getting caught shouldn't be the motivating factor for you obeying the laws.

"It should be the pleasure in being able to sleep at night knowing that you have done the right thing by your kids. That should be the motivating factor."

Mr Hastings said video-game makers appeared to be steering away from extreme graphic sadism, as seen in the first video game to be banned in New Zealand, Manhunt.

Players of Manhunt take on the role of a character and gain points depending on the level of violence used to kill opponents, who are suffocated, repeatedly beaten, slashed, stabbed and decapitated.

Mr Hastings said parents were often hampered in educating themselves about video-game ratings because of out-of-date legislation, which meant many titles slipped onto New Zealand shelves without a rating.

Although all films and DVDs must be rated, electronic games such as those played on PlayStation or Xbox consoles do not need to go through the classification process unless they have objectionable material, he said.

Mr Hastings said he intended to ask the Internal Affairs Ministry to repeal parts of the Films, Videos and Publications Classification Act, drafted in 1993, so that all video games receive classification.

Internal Affairs Minister Richard Worth said he provisionally supported the chief censor's view.