The police have called on Namibians with any evidence of social media speculations of child pornography to report it to the nearest police station to launch an investigation.

The Head of the Police Public Relations Division, Deputy Commissioner Kauna Shikwambi, says child pornography is against the law.

Thus far, the police have not received any reports on child pornography rings; however, they were notified of WhatsApp picture slides that are in circulation.

"What we have witnessed is the WhatsApp picture slides that are in circulation, with the allegation that they are those girls, young girls who are involved in illegal sexual activities. But then that is not tangible enough to initiate an investigation. Some of those girls even came forward and have gone publicly to declare that their current image has been tarnished. So it is somewhat vague for any investigation to be pursued or launched; that's why we are saying we depend on informers. Anyone who has concrete information must contact the nearest police station and share what they know."

The Ministry of Gender Equality, Poverty Eradication, and Social Welfare says that child porn not only violates the innocence and well-being of children but also exposes them to significant psychological and emotional risks in the long term.

The ministry therefore urged parents to reach out to the ministry to offer a safe place where children can disclose.

"Unsupervised media usage, on the other hand, can also bring content that exposes children to inappropriate material, cyberbullying, and exploitation. We therefore urge parents to reach out to the ministry so that it offers them a safe place where the children can disclose what they are going through and what they've gone through, to assist them in dealing with a trauma that may only manifest itself in the long run, and to also use it as a measure to prevent future offender incidences. Protecting our children is a collaborative responsibility, and we appeal to the public to prioritise the protection and guidance of our children and respond to such incidences when they occur in our communities," said the spokesperson of the ministry, Lukas Haufiku.