Developing a policy framework on the prevention, data collection and eradication of gender-based cyber-violence
Organised by the Czech Republic, Sweden, France and Alternative to Violence
“In 2020, 71 per cent of the world’s youth (aged between 15 and 24 years) were using the Internet, compared with 57 per cent of the other age groups. On the global scale, young people were thus 1.24 times more likely to connect than the rest of the population”[i]. The internet has become a platform for (school)work, everyday communication, building relationships and dating. However, the spread of the Internet has also expanded the tools of negative social phenomena such as gender-based cyber-violence including cyberbullying and teen dating violence. New technologies provide new channels through which violence is perpetrated or experienced.
Having experienced teen dating violence may lead to anxiety, depression, substance abuse and re-victimisation, with girls reporting bigger subjective impact. Women and girls may choose to withdraw from the digital sphere, silence themselves and eventually lose opportunities to build their education, professional career and support networks. Speakers therefore focused on partner violence among youth and adolescents, it`s forms and consequences, and how we as a society can help young people to form healthy relationships and become safe partners and parents.
Ms. Alyssa Ahrabare, Vice-President of French coordination for European Women’s Lobby, France
“Cyberrape, more commonly known as revenge porn, is the act of making intimate content (photos, videos, written messages, etc.) public on the internet and social networks. It is a method of revenge used by men/boys against women/girls in the event of separation for example. It is often accompanied by blackmail and threats.
Alyssa Ahrabare, Vice-President of French coordination for EWL |
Revealing a woman’s intimacy against her will, even if that intimacy is not sexual, even if there was no intent to harm, and even if the woman agreed to produce the content in question, is violence […]. Some women, especially adolescent girls, end up committing suicide. Women, especially young girls, have little or no information on this subject and on their rights. They need to be informed that it is a crime, punishable by law, and that they can file a complaint. It is also imperative to fight against sexist cyber-violence in general, in particular in colleges and high schools.
[i] https://www.itu.int/itu-d/reports/statistics/2021/11/15/youth-internet-use/