Inquiry clears retailers of sexualising children

A Senate inquiry into the premature sexualisation of children in the media has dismissed the notion "inappropriate" tween clothing should be regulated by the government.

The committee argued children 12 years of age and younger rarely had the means to purchase products without parental supervision – thus placing the onus away from government bodies. Amelia Edwards, who appeared before the committee in a private capacity, argued it was the parent's responsibility to govern the purchase of merchandise such as padded bras for girls well under the age of 12.

"If parents do not buy sexualised material, if they do not buy inappropriate material for their children, then the companies are not going to produce it because it is not going to return a profit for them," she said.

The committee also brushed aside the "shock value" of terms such as 'corporate paedophilia' – a slur once levelled at department store David Jones over the nature of its marketing to tweens – and noted there was no evidence to suggest children who appeared in clothing or poses "inappropriate to their age" were more vulnerable to sexual abuse by paedophiles.

"The committee believes that, as a community, we should avoid any moves towards greater restrictions on what may be published in the media on that ground," it noted.

Value department store Target, underwear supplier Holeproof and intimate apparel retailer Bras N Things were just some of the clothing businesses to make submissions to the inquiry. The three retailers were identified in a submission by not-for-profit organisation Kids Free 2B Kids, which alleged they had marketed inappropriate clothing to young children.

Holeproof general manager John Ripani rebuked a claim made by the organisation's founder Julie Gale, who argued its 'Love Kylie Princess' range was "very skimpy and highly sexualised". The range, which was marketed at 8 – 11 year olds over 2007, first came under fire

when advocates noted its website included a link to the adult Love Kylie collection. "As a result, we removed the 'home page' and created a greater separation of the two pages," Ripani said. "At no point was it our intention to create a 'highly sexualised' product and we would dispute very strongly that this was the outcome."

Other issues called into question throughout the inquiry included the mixing of adult-only merchandise with children's and tween products and the use of racy slogans on tween briefs and apparel.

By Assia Benmedjdoub