Children faced online harassment during the pandemic: ASK study

A survey conducted by Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) revealed that a large number of children have experienced various forms of online harassment during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The survey was conducted in five districts (Dhaka, Chattogram, Rajshahi, Cox's Bazar and Satkhira) with 108 children; 61 girls and 47 boys who were selected through purposeful and random sampling. The findings were disclosed at a press conference at Jatiya Press Club yesterday.

Eighty-three percent of them were students and 17 percent were working children. Eighty-four percent of the interviewees use different types of social media while 94 percent of the interviewees informed that their lives have been clearly impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Among these children, a staggering 30 percent that they experienced online harassment last year. Eighty-eight percent of them informed that they were harassed by unknown people on the internet.

Among victims of harassment, 56.25 percent are girls. Forty-one percent of these children informed their parents about the harassment and 12 percent refused to talk about their experience.

The acts of harassment include disclosing private and sensitive information on the internet, online sexual harassment and abuse, cyber bullying, blackmailing, getting exposed to pornography or sexual contents.

Many children reported that they have experienced several forms of harassment at the same time.    

However, legal steps have been taken only in six percent of these cases.

The survey found online harassment of children sharply increased during the pandemic. According to a pre-pandemic survey of ASK published in early 2020, some 8.39 percent girl children had experienced online harassment.

However, in 2021, the number has increased by over four times.

According to experts, legal complexity and lack of awareness are some of the key reasons behind this increase.

Quazi MH Supan, associate professor of law at Dhaka University said to The Daily Star, "Online sexual harassment and paedophilia are not properly addressed in our legal system. For instance, there is no specific legal provision on paedophilia in Digital Security Act, 2018. Child pornography has been addressed in the Pornography Control Act, 2012. However, there is no provision for the cases where perpetrators and victims both are children."

"Members of the law enforcement agencies, particularly who work in the peripheral regions are not trained to be children friendly and also not skilled enough to collect digital evidence," he added.

Supreme Court advocate Barrister Abdul Halim, also chairman of Children's Charity Bangladesh Foundation said, "Lack of reliability on judicial system is also one of the reasons due to which children and their parents are not seeking legal aid."

"The process that starts from filing the case, the investigation process and finally getting a verdict is so lengthy, sluggish and complicated that many parents prefer to remain silent. Conviction rate for cyber crime and rape is only three percent in Bangladesh," adds Barrister Halim.

Lack of awareness among parents and children is also a major reason behind this increase.

Ambica Roy, coordinator, Child Rights Unit of ASK said, "Children and abusers both got the opportunity to spend a lot of time on the internet during this pandemic. However, many parents in Bangladesh are not conscious about how a child can be harassed on the internet."

"On the other hand, social stigma is also deteriorating the situation. Many children do not share their experiences of harassment in fear of further punishment from their guardians," she adds.

At the press conference, ASK recommends several measures to prevent online harassment of children which include: ensuring safe internet, including issues related to online child harassment into the curriculum, awareness-raising activities with parents, developing parental control applications, trying online child harassment cases under cyber crime tribunal and reforming the relevant laws such as The Children Act, 2013 (amended 2018); ICT Act, 2006 (amended 2013); Digital Security Act, 2018 and The Pornography Control Act, 2012 to prevent online violence against children.