(Revised / updated on 12 October 2015)
New York, 24 September 2015 – A new discussion paper
released today by the
United Nations Broadband Commission reveals that a growing number
of women online have been exposed to some form of cyber violence, and urges
governments and industry to work harder and more effectively together to better
protect the growing number of women and girls who are victims of online threats
and harassment.
The paper notes that despite the rapidly growing number of women experiencing
online violence, only 26 percent of law enforcement agencies in the 86 countries
surveyed are taking appropriate action.
Entitled ‘Combatting Online Violence Against Women & Girls: A Worldwide
Wake-Up Call’, the paper was released earlier today at an event at United
Nations Headquarters in New York by the Commission’s Working Group on Gender,
which is co-Chaired by UNDP Administrator, Helen Clark, and UN
Under-Secretary-General and UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka.
Working Group members, which also include
representatives from the tech sector and civil society,
hope the paper will mobilize the public and private sectors to establish
concrete strategies aimed at stemming the rising tide of online violence against
women.
Without concerted global action to curb the various escalating forms of
online violence, an unprecedented surge of ‘cyber violence against women and
girls (cyber VAWG)’ could run rampant and significantly impede the uptake of
broadband by women everywhere. The paper notes that cyber VAWG already exists in
many forms, including online harassment, public shaming, the desire to inflict
physical harm, sexual assaults, murders and induced suicides.
The rapid spread of the Internet means that effective legal and social
controls of online anti-social and criminal behaviours continue to be an immense
challenge. And in the age of the social Internet and ‘anywhere, anytime’ mobile
access, cyber violence can strike at any time, and can relentlessly follow its
targets everywhere they go.
“In this paper we’re arguing that complacency and failure to address and
solve cyber violence could significantly impede the uptake of broadband services
by girls and women worldwide,” said ITU Secretary-General Houlin Zhao, who
serves as co-Vice Chair of the Broadband Commission, alongside UNESCO
Director-General Irina Bokova. “The Net is an amazing resource for personal
empowerment, and we need to ensure that as many girls and women as possible
benefit from the amazing possibilities it offers.”
Key findings of the paper include:
- Women in the age range of 18 to 24 are
uniquely likely to experience stalking and sexual harassment in
addition to physical threats.
- One in five female Internet users live in
countries where harassment and abuse of women online is
extremely unlikely to be punished.
- In many countries women are reluctant to report their
victimization for fear of social repercussions.
- Cyber VAWG puts a premium on emotional bandwidth, personal
and workplace time, financial resources and missed wages.
“Violence against women and girls is never acceptable anywhere, no matter
whether it is committed on the streets, in the home, or on the information
highway,” said UNDP Administrator Helen Clark. “To achieve sustainable
development for all, we must build a world where women and girls can live their
lives free of violence and fulfil their potential as valued and equal members of
society.”
“Online violence has subverted the original positive promise of the
internet’s freedoms and in too many circumstances has made it a chilling space
that permits anonymous cruelty and facilitates harmful acts towards women and
girls,” said UN Women’s Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka. We want to reclaim and expand
the opportunities it offers. That means recognizing the scale and depth of the
damage being done – and taking strong, concerted steps to call it – and stop it.
Abuse online is still abuse, with potency and very real consequences.”
The paper presents a set of Key Recommendations, proposing a
global framework based around three ‘S’s – Sensitization, Safeguards and
Sanctions.
- Sensitization – Preventing cyber VAWG
through training, learning, campaigning and community
development to promote changes in in social attitudes and
behavior.
- Safeguards – Implementing oversight and
maintaining a responsible internet infrastructure through
technical solutions and more informed customer care practices
- Sanctions – Develop and uphold laws,
regulations and governance mechanisms to deter perpetrators from
committing these acts.
The paper argues that rigorous oversight and enforcement of rules banning
cyber VAWG on the Internet will be an essential foundation stone if the Internet
is to become a safe, respectful and empowering space for women and girls, and,
by extension, for boys and men.
You can watch an on-demand webcast of the launch event at:
http://webtv.un.org
Follow the discussion over Twitter: #endVAW #cyberviolence
For more on the Broadband Commission, visit:
www.broadbandcommission.org
Follow the Broadband Commission on Facebook:
www.facebook.com/broadbandcommission
Follow the Broadband Commission on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/UNBBCom
For more information, please contact: