World
Irish MEP calls for EU-wide law on cyberbullying
Nicole ‘Coco’ Fox from Eire dedicated suicide in 2018 after being bullied on-line.
The unhappy story of an Irish woman who took her personal life in 2018 may nonetheless see an excellent achievement materialise within the battle in opposition to cyberbullying
Nicole ‘Coco’ Fox hanged herself at age of 21, after being abused bodily and on-line for 3 years.
Since then, her mom Jackie has been relentlessly campaigning to advertise laws that punishes bullying. In 2021 Eire adopted the so-called Coco’s regulation, with as much as seven years in jail for many who distribute or publish intimate photographs of an individual with out consent. Now, Jackie’s battle is being taken up at a European stage.
“So, on-line abuse is way worse than the bodily abuse, as a result of as soon as it will get inside your head, you recognize, your psychological well being is all tousled,” the mom of Nicole, Jackie Fox, instructed Euronews.
“It is a lot more durable to get it out of your head mentally on-line than bodily abuse. That is from her expertise.”
“There are individuals in jail proper now below Coco’s regulation. There are 105 individuals up for prosecution. So many individuals below investigation,” Fox added.
“So, I feel it should not be solely in Eire: if this regulation has labored the best way it has in Eire, why not carry it Europe-wide?”
Different international locations have already began to sort out cyberbullying, similar to Italy and France. However some MEPs, together with Frances Fitzgerald from Eire, want to have a standard EU framework.
“Another international locations have partial laws, however what we’re saying now’s that we want complete laws proper throughout Europe,” she stated in an interview with Euronews.
“We want a European regulation, European directive to make sure that we’re dealing successfully with cyberbullying as a result of it results in demise.”
The EPP Group within the European Parliament have stated they’ll request a debate on cyberbullying within the subsequent plenary agenda in Strasbourg in order that Jackie Fox can carry her daughter’s story additionally to MEPs.