The Fiji Human Rights and Anti-Discrimination Commission has lodged a complaint with the Police and the Online Safety Commission to probe the death of a social media influencer who allegedly took their own life after being bullied and harassed on a public Facebook chat forum.
In response to this tragedy, the Commission is urging collective action from relevant bodies to combat cyberbullying, harassment, and hate speech on social media platforms. The call to action comes in light of news that the victim, a member of the LGBTI community, reportedly committed suicide due to online bullying.
“Cyberbullying infringes on several human rights, including the right to life, the right to privacy, and the right to live with dignity,” said the Commission chairperson. “It is alleged that the deceased was humiliated, threatened, and abused on this popular public chat forum by commenters, some of whom used anonymous accounts.”
The Commission expressed concern that administrators of these public chat forums are failing to moderate and control hate speech on their platforms. “Responsibility lies with the administrators of the public chat-forum Facebook pages and those making the comments, and they must face the full extent of the law,” the chairperson added.
“Freedom of speech carries responsibility and has limitations. Section 17 (3)(b) (i) of the Constitution of the Republic of Fiji states that free speech may be limited to protect reputation, privacy, dignity, rights, or freedoms of others, including the right to be free from hate speech, whether directed at individuals or groups. Social media users must respect this.”
“Furthermore, Section 26 (3) (a) of the Constitution stipulates that a person must not be unfairly discriminated against, directly or indirectly, based on their actual or supposed personal characteristics or circumstances, including gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, and expression,” the chairperson concluded.