Page 14 - IB February 2024

Technology Technology

Mereseini Rakuita, Principal
Strategic Lead of the Pacific
Community’s (SPC) Pacific
Women Lead Programme

Shania Singh, victim of cyberbullying UNODC’s Matthew Watson

PACIFIC WOMEN AND ONLINE ABUSE

By Kite Pareti Minister Sitiveni Rabuka’s elections campaign.
Rabuka’s 1987 coup and its impact on Fijians of Indian
Fijian women are bearing the brunt of online abuse, says descent meant Singh was considered a “betrayer of her
the country’s Online Safety Commission (OSC). own kind”, leading to online abuse by supporters and party
The OSC says 61.44% of Fijian women experience this form members of an opposition party.
of violence while men account for 38.56%. Facebook accounts “The cyberbullying continued for a year after that,
for 57.58% of reported incidents, TikTok for 15.95%, while becoming increasingly absurd each time an AI-generated
incidents were also reported on WhatsApp, Viber, Email, video, a fake account’s comment, or a lie was spread about
Messenger, and Instagram. me, to the point where I actually visited my lawyers,” she
Online bullying accounts for 29.1% of reported cases, added.
while image-based abuse stands at 10.96%. The OSC says “I was advised to press charges. I chose not to. For now.
defamatory comments and posts make up another significant My reason for this was, the person I had gathered the most
portion at 21.56%. information on was a youth of a marginalised community,
“It serves as a reminder that we must remain vigilant in influenced by unprofessional politicians and political
protecting ourselves and our loved ones from the dangers hopefuls. Had I pressed charges, this young person would’ve
lurking in cyberspace,” the OSC’s Acting Commissioner, had a record, and be unable to advance in life, whilst their
Tajeshwari Devi told attendees at a recent Safer Internet Day influencers carried on with theirs,” she said.
event in Suva. Singh said since advising the person that she would press
Fiji’s Shania Singh, a former television producer and charges if the harassment continued, most of the attacks have
personality who now runs a business as a content creator, stopped. However, she plans to create a series on her social
marketing specialist, and online influencer, knows these media platforms to address the issue of cyberbullying.
dangers first-hand.
Over 134,000 people follow Singh on TikTok, and nearly Not enough data
70,000 on Facebook. Mereseini Rakuita, Principal Strategic Lead of the Pacific
“The cyberbullying started when I was still on television, Community’s (SPC) Pacific Women Lead Programme, notes
with many people having different opinions about me, mainly the data deficit when it comes to these cybercrimes. “We
because I showed up almost out of nowhere, and they didn’t don’t have the relevant data that we need to make informed
know much about me. As time went on, the audience grew decisions, policy decisions and interventions that could
warmer and I grew thicker skin,” she told Islands Business. address the negative impacts of technology,” she told Islands
She says criticism intensified during the 2022 Fiji elections Business.
where she and her partner were part of the now Prime “We know stories about kids who have killed themselves

14 Islands Business, February 2024