Blocking access to a website at the centre of controversy following the deaths of two teenage girls will not end cyber-bullying and could merely lead to other similar sites being used instead, the Ombudsman for Children Emily Logan has warned.
Ms Logan made her comments in Limerick today at the launch of a report on bullying in schools undertaken by her office.
Some 300 children aged from 10 to 17 from across the country took part in the compiling of the report, entitled Dealing with Bullying in Schools: a Consultation with Children and Young People.
The Ombudsman for Children is calling on the Government to ensure bullying is addressed as a public health issue rather than one confined to the sphere of education.
According to Ms Logan, cyber-bullying and homophobic bullying were two of the most prevalent forms of bullying raised by those who participated in the report.
When asked whether Irish children’s access to website ask.fm should be blocked, Ms Logan replied: “I don’t think blocking one website is going to stop the issue. If anything it would possibly generate even more websites if it creates the amount of attention that it’s getting, and rightfully so, in terms of the association with cyber-bullying.”
Ask.fm has been at the centre of controversy following the deaths of two teenage girls who took their own lives amid claims they were being bullied online.
It is estimated that more than 10,000 Irish schoolchildren find it difficult to go to school every day as a result of being bullied, and at least 24 per cent of primary school children and 14 per cent of post primary school students have experienced bullying.
On average, more than 40 per cent of complaints made by parents to the Office of the Children’s Ombudsman relate to education - and bullying is among the five issues most frequently raised.
“Two things came up very strongly from this report from children: one is homophobic bullying, because it’s difficult to deal with, and the other is cyber-bullying … because it’s hidden, because it’s pervasive in Children’s lives. It doesn’t finish at the school door, it follows children home, which is why it is much more intense and much more upsetting for children and young people…” Ms Logan said.
The issue of cyber-bullying has been to the fore of late following the deaths of 13-year-old Erin Gallagher in Co Donegal last weekend and 15-year-old Ciara Pugsley in Co Leitrim in September.
“Sometimes, unfortunately, it takes the kind of trauma that we have seen over the last few weeks for us to react in terms of a public reaction to something as serious as this,” Ms Logan said.
“If ask.fm is blocked in Ireland, then another website will develop, and that’s part of the problem - it’s not quite as simple as blocking a website. This is a complex issue that requires a broader response than simply blocking ask.fm. It’s everything from teaching parents to having reasonable oversight of their children’s online activity to educating children,” she added.
According to Ms Logan, girls are much more likely to be victims of cyber-bullying than boys, because boys are more involved in physical violence or physical bullying.
The Ombudsman for Children believes there should be an anti-bullying policy in every school in Ireland.
“Schools’ websites are there to help parents make a choice, but often you will find there is no mention of an anti-bullying policy because people are reluctant to even admit that there is any bullying happening in schools,” she said.
“I would support young people’s views that when parents make a choice about what school they will send their children to, that the website should have that information. We should have anti-bullying policies that parents are involved in and everybody should share the responsibility… Most certainly there should be an anti-bullying policy in every school,” she added.