President calls for law on cyberbullying
President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca said yesterday the fight against cyberbullying should not only include the strengthening of existing legislation but also the enactment of a specific law.
“We must do more to ensure that online bullying is... acknowledged as a major offence.
“To be able to do this, we must strengthen existing legislation and also consider a specific law that highlights the crimes of cyberbullying,” she said.
The President was addressing a conference on digital dangers, including cyberbullying, organised by Labour MEP Marlene Mizzi yesterday. The theme was ‘Type in love – type out hate’.
She stressed that bullying of any sort did endless damage to children’s peace of mind, their families and communities.
Society could not remain passive “in the face of so many broken children, due to any sort of bullying”, she said. One could not be complacent or content with sporadic initiatives to address a “scourge which is ruining the innocence and positivity of our children and young people”.
A European Commission report last year – ‘Cyberbullying among young people’ – showed that more than one in 10 children aged 11 to 16 said they had experienced serious bullying online.