Reporter
carisa.lee@cnc3.co.tt
At least three children have been charged for cyberbullying-related matters in the last six months.
This was revealed by acting Inspector Ajene Balewa, of the TTPS’ Cyber and Social Media Unit, during an ICT Panel Discussion on Cyberbullying facilitated by the Office of the Prime Minister-Gender and Child Affairs Department at St Clair Avenue, Port-of-Spain, yesterday.
“There were two or three children that were before the court,” he said.
Based on the data collected, UNICEF’s Child Protection Officer Bertrand Moses revealed that 40 per cent of students he spoke with experienced cyberbullying during their lifetime.
But Balewa explained that in some cases, the bullying moved from online and became physical.
“If you look at two children having an issue and settling it physically with violence, then it creates another challenge,” he said.
The police officer explained that in general, the reporting of cyberbullying remained low, as parents or schools tried to deal with it privately. However, Balewa added that they too try to avoid staining the minor’s reputation by having them face the court.
“But sometimes, it’s unavoidable,” he stated.
Balewa joined three other panellists, director of Information Communication Technology from the OPM Nkosi Alexander, Children Authority psychologist Alissa-Ann Wanliss and UNICEF’s Child Protection Officer Bertrand Moses during the discussion.
Listening and engaging with the panellists were students from Success Laventille Secondary, Chaguanas North Secondary, Woodbrook Secondary and several community residences, among them St Jude’s Home for Girls, St Mary’s Children’s Home, St Dominic’s Children’s Home, Freedom Foundation for Justice, Islamic Home for Children, and Rainbow Rescue.
Quoting information provided by the World Health Organization, Moses told the students that within their generation, 50 per cent of mental health disorders begin from the age of 14, while 75 per cent of the disorders begin when people are 25 years old.
“That means when you combine your exposure to the internet reality, the online bullying, it makes your life so much more difficult than any other generation,” Moses explained to the youths.
Moses noted that during his time as a therapist, the focus groups and conversations he had with young people showed that their fear of cyberbullying made them afraid to even attend school.
“Twenty per cent of young people actually did stay home from school because they were being cyberbullied,” Moses said.
He told the students that what they type does not only affect the virtual space but the victim’s mental health as well. He said in severe cases, the victims can turn to substance abuse to numb the pain and they can have psychosomatic features where they feel sick in their body, which in turn also affects their mind.
“What can you do about that? I would like everyone to take a deep breath with me 3, 2, 1 hold and breathe out. The reality is by deep breathing you can help to calm your nervous system,” he told the students.
The panel discussion was part of the OPM’s Gender and Child Affairs Department Child Abuse Prevention Month (April) drive.