Breaking the Silence: Cyberviolence Against Women in Europe
On the 20th of February, 2024, Politics4Her EU hosted a webinar titled ‘A Safer Digital Space: Policy Responses to Online Gender-Based Violence (OGBV) in Europe’, drawing participation from over 50 attendees.
The event aimed to examine the issue of online gender-based violence within the context of EU policy, delving into:
Existing legal protections for women, girls, and marginalised genders,
Significant gaps in legislation;
And, specific changes and/or amendments to enhance the safety of women, girls, and marginalised genders in digital spaces.
Our panel of expert speakers featured Josephine Ballon, a lawyer and co-CEO of HateAid, a German non-profit organisation focusing on digital rights, Elena Michael, co-Founder and Director at #NotYourPorn, a survivor-led movement combating image-based sexual abuse, and Mardiya Siba Yahaya, a feminist digital sociologist, researcher, and community advocate.
Leveraging the expertise of our speakers, the webinar addressed diverse aspects of online gender-based violence, including online sexist hate speech, image-based sexual abuse (IBSA), and the potential risks of Artificial Intelligence (AI), as well as its impact on marginalised communities.
This policy report aims to expand upon these enlightening discussions to conduct a comprehensive examination of online gender-based violence within EU policy. While not striving for an exhaustive analysis, the report will prioritise the examination of online sexist hate speech, IBSA, and the risks associated with AI.
Co-authored by: Amanda Jäverfelt, Ángeles Zúñiga, Lauren Bryant, Yolanda Betrán, Lavinia Rotundi
Designed by: Monika Tomljanovic, Sehar Amin, Caroline Moraa, Mehar Allidina
Read the full brief here.
