Rights activists at a discussion on Sunday urged authorities to ensure the safety of children and youth in the digital space, saying that increasing harassment and violence online were deterring them from expressing their views.
Speakers said that children and young people frequently face cyber-bullying, sexual harassment and other forms of online violence, forcing many to withdraw from digital platforms.
The discussion was organised marking the launch of the project Speak Up EU-CSO, initiated by Netherlands-based child rights organisation Terre des Hommes Netherlands, in cooperation with INCIDIN Bangladesh, Breaking the Silence and Ain o Salish Kendra, according to a press release.
Speakers stressed that if children and young people were provided with safe online environments, they could express their opinions freely and fulfil their potential, which would in turn strengthen their rights. Terming them the future of the country, they said that protecting and promoting their freedom of expression in digital spaces was crucial.
Participants noted that children aged in between 15鈥�18 years and young people aged in between 18鈥�24 years, who increasingly relied on the internet for education and social interaction during and after the Covid pandemic, have faced rising levels of online harassment.
A UNICEF study found that up to 32 per cent of children in Bangladesh were victims of online violence.
Adolescents (people aged in between 12鈥�18 years) and youth (people aged in between 18鈥�24 years) who are digitally active but lack skills, resources or safe environments are particularly vulnerable, they added.
Speakers observed that as Bangladesh has ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Children, it is the responsibility of the government, families, academia and the private sector to place children and young people at the centre of digital policies.
They also called for favourable policy frameworks and rights-based public discourse led by children and youth themselves. Strengthening community protection committees and systems was essential to safeguard the online safety of diverse groups of children and young people, they said.
Under the project, 2,000 children and youth in Dhaka, Satkhira, Bagerhat and Gazipur districts will receive training on preventing online harassment. The initiative will also work with local communities and authorities to promote safer online spaces.
Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission director general Brigadier General SM Moniruzzaman attended the event as the chief guest, while Terre des Hommes Netherlands country manager Nazrul Islam chaired the session.
Among others, ICT Division joint secretary Mohammad Saiful Hassan, European Union delegation to Bangladesh team leader for inclusive governance Enrico Lorenzon, INCIDIN Bangladesh executive director AKM Masud Ali, and Ain o Salish Kendra executive committee member Tahmina Rahman also spoke at the programme.
