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‘Delete Nothing’ website to tackle online violence

03 May 2021

  • Allows victims, survivors to document evidence

  • Useful to report to law enforcement/SNS platforms, accessing workplace mediation

  “Delete Nothing”, a website aimed at helping victims and survivors of cybercrimes to safely and securely document incidents of online violence, was launched in April by a group of volunteers. “It is a documentation tool (https://deletenothing.org/share-your-story/) that helps both survivors and organisations, lawyers, and anyone else supporting survivors of online violence to anonymously and securely document experiences of such violence and to download a copy of it for their own use or records,” stated feminist activist and “Delete Nothing” Co-Creator Sachini Perera to The Morning. Perera further said that the experiences they share would be used to inform evidence-based advocacy. “We will call on the Government, the law enforcement authorities, internet service providers, and social media platforms to recognise online violence as a countrywide issue, as opposed to some dominant narratives that frame it as just an urban issue, and to put more political will, organisational commitments, and financial resources into addressing it comprehensively,” she added. According to Perera, “Delete Nothing” also offers survivors of online violence, and their loved ones, information on various forms of online violence, ways of dealing with such violence, and how to connect to support spaces, including non-Governmental organisations and psychosocial support. Speaking to The Morning, “Delete Nothing” Co-Creator Zainab Ibrahim explained that while there were more and more instances of violence taking place online, aided by technology, they continued to be underreported and less-documented due to various reasons. “We also observed that while a lot of survivors of online violence primarily want the violence to stop, and for harmful content to be removed from platforms, it is important to maintain records of incidents of online violence without causing further harm to the survivors, as there is a need for evidence if they decide to opt for further action and to take further steps, like reporting to the law enforcement authorities, or filing a case with the Police, reporting to platforms, or accessing workplace mediation,” said Ibrahim. Meanwhile, “Delete Nothing” Co-Creator Jayanthi Kuru-Utumpala claimed that studies show that increased access to the internet by women, girls, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and queer and questioning people is directly proportional to the increase in violence against them online. “This is proving true in Sri Lanka. With an increased use of digital spaces, including by human rights defenders, it has increasingly become a site for sexism, misogyny, homophobia, and transphobia, intersecting with ethno-religious nationalism,” explained Kuru-Utumpala. According to Kuru-Utumpala, law enforcement authorities, State institutions, and social media platforms are not well-equipped in terms of resources and capacities to address this issue, and those who attempt to seek redress face a multitude of challenges, including the patriarchal attitudes of law enforcement agents, having to access services located in metropolises, lengthy processes, language barriers in reporting, etc. “There is also more focus on legal and criminal justice remedies for online violence, rather than a comprehensive approach that also considers awareness-raising, education, prevention, platform accountability, mental health and wellbeing of survivors, etc. These are gaps that require multi sectoral co-operation and co-learning. ‘Delete Nothing’ aims to be a small part of this ecosystem by building an evidence base on the experiences of online violence in Sri Lanka and the responses to such, while providing information in Tamil, Sinhala, and English on the various options available to survivors as the next steps, while also managing their expectations,” said Kuru-Utumpala. More information could be found at https://deletenothing.org/contact/


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