The Guide against Digital Violence is presented

Mexico City. Dealing with digital violence, in any of its various forms, can be a tortuous path for victims. In extreme cases, criminal proceedings are often resorted to, as occurred with the process that gave rise to the so-called Olympia Lawa set of rules that punish crimes against sexual privacy.

However, it is not always advisable to opt for the criminal route, since prevention and civil avenues can be explored first.

Based on evidence that most of the people affected do not know if they can report or how to do so, civil organizations decided to develop a Guide to Defense against Digital Violence, a platform that offers tools to “learn how to address and prevent digital violence online from different angles and with different strategies.”

Impunity Zero and the Network in Defense of Digital Rights (R3D) presented the platform Digital Violence Guide which offers useful tools to both victims and legal counselors in cases of digital violence.

The guide defines digital violence as follows: “Actions motivated by gender that are committed, instigated or aggravated by the use of information and communication technologies (ICT), social media platforms and email, and cause psychological and emotional harm, reinforce prejudices, damage reputation, cause economic losses and pose barriers to participation in public life and can lead to forms of sexual violence and other forms of physical violence.”

The platform offers “quite complete and digestible information, it is a safe place to explore and decide what to do if you are a victim,” said Catalina Kühne, director of Impunidad Cero.

For example, if a person is a victim of violence in any digital space, they can consult the legal framework in their state of residence and the most appropriate ways to deal with the situation.

The guide contains information on: the different types of digital violence; recommendations for preventing attacks and for filing criminal or civil complaints if so decided; a guide for requesting the removal of content on the most widely used social networks; as well as a list of entities where digital violence is classified as a crime.