Oneya: Online violence is silencing female journalists

In 2018, my article titled Shame on us for shaming Sharon, which called out the victim-shaming culture, attracted more abuse online than I had ever imagined any of my writings could ever do.

The opinion article was about the murder of Sharon Otieno, a university student alleged to have been having an affair with a prominent politician. Sharon, who was expectant, was suspected of being raped before her death.

Pathologists concluded she had been stabbed eight times — four in the back, three in the neck, and once in the left side of her abdomen, leading to excessive bleeding.

As the chilling account of her murder was unearthed by media, online attackers also armed themselves, first coming for the victim, then they came for us---those who dared speak up against victim-shaming.

“Do you know what they are saying about you on Facebook?” a concerned colleague asked me.

“No, what are they saying?” I asked, filled with dread. And then she told me the unprintable words that were being used to describe me, my article and anything else trolls could attack.

I shrugged, feigning disinterest, but made a mental note not to follow up on any of the comments. Some were sent to me as e-mails, though, so I could not live in oblivion forever.

As a journalist and media trainer, I was aware of technology-assisted violence against women but had never been a victim until then. But I felt silenced. As millions of female journalists do whenever they are trolled online.

Female journalists worldwide are disproportionately affected by online violence, and my case was mild compared to others who’ve received rape and death threats.

My experience fell under cyber-harassment or bullying, spamming or sexist trolling.

Increased online violence

In April 2021, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) released a pioneering discussion paper titled The Chilling: Global Trends in Online Violence Against Women Journalists. The report pointed outa “sharp increase in online violence against women journalists and dissecting the orchestrated campaigns behind this toxic phenomenon”.

Of the women interviewed, 73 per cent said they had been threatened, intimidated and insulted online in connection with their work. UNESCO launched a campaign dubbed #JournalistsToo to raise awareness of the impact of online violence against women. Whether this will make a difference or not remains to be seen.

Closer home, a 2010 Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANET) report titled Women and Cybercrime in Kenya: The Dark Side of ICTS, cited that cybercrime often targets groups that are already marginalised, adding that “laws on cybercrime lack consideration of their social impact. Often pushed by the private sector to regulate intellectual property matters or by the State to enforce control and surveillance on citizens, it is uncertain whether women’s rights stand to be protected or traded in this debate”.

A case in point could be the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act of 2018, which legal experts have pointed out has its good and bad sides. Writing for the Elephant, Mercy Mutemi, an Advocate of the High Court of Kenya, says that one of the good things about it is the hefty penalty for cybercrimes – which covers cyberstalking, cyberbullying, doxing, trolling and dogpiling. Such acts attract a Sh20 million fine, 10-year prison term or both.

Ms Mutemi further argues that “precision is one of the areas where the Act falls short. There is a likelihood that most charges brought under it will be terminated prematurely”.

Despite the hefty fines imposed on cyberbullies in Kenya and other parts of the world, female journalists continue to suffer under the invisible hands of keyboard warriors, and it will take our collective effort and goodwill to turn the tide.

As we prepare to mark the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence from November 25, let’s remember that journalism is not a crime, but cyberbullying is.

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Faith Oneya is a member of the Association of Media Women in Kenya.