Lalitpur - Safer Internet Day 2023 is being celebrated on coming Tuesday around the globe with the theme ‘Want to talk about it? Making space for conversations about life online.’
Safer
Internet Day is celebrated in February each year to promote
the safer and positive use of digital technology for children and young
people and to inspire a national conversation. It calls upon young
people, parents, carers, teachers, social workers, law enforcement,
companies, and policymakers to join together in helping to create a better
internet. As
the Safer Internet Day national secretariat, ChildSafeNet, a specialised organisation
working to protect children and young people online, has been coordinating and
promoting Safer Internet Day in Nepal.
" The day offers the opportunity to highlight positive uses of
technology and explore the role we all play in helping to create a better and
safer online environment for children and young people. Children and young
people have the same right to be protected online as they have the right to be
protected offline.", says Anil Raghuvanshi, Founder/President of
ChildSafeNet.
As children and young people are heavy users of
technology, unsafe use of the internet exposes them to serious harm, such
as online sexual abuse & exploitation, cyberbullying, cyber grooming, phishing
and sextortion. Parental influence, guidance and education have
the potential to empower children to use technology responsibly, respectfully,
critically and creatively. Therefore, Raghuvanshi urged
the parents, government, schools, private sector, media, NGOs and all
duty-bearers to take timely and adequate actions to protect children online. Therefore,
we need to work together for a safer and better internet.
There has been a tremendous increase in online child sexual
abuse and exploitation globally. According to the US-based organisation,
National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, there were 63,266 CyberTipline
reports (suspected reports of online child
sexual exploitation imagery) from Nepal in 2019. In 2021, CyberTipline
reports from Nepal increased to 263,130, which is a 415% increase. Moreover, according
to a ChildSafeNet and UNICEF study, one in two boys or young men and one in
three girls or young women are exposed to sexual content online, despite the government-imposed
ban on pornographic sites in Nepal.
Although
Safer Internet Day 2023 is on 7 February, online safety awareness activities
will be conducted throughout the year. ChildSafeNet and its partners will
conduct online safety awareness sessions in different parts of the country.
More than 35 organisations, including UN agencies, INGOs, NGOs, CBOS, the private sector and media houses, have expressed solidarity with the Safer Internet Day in Nepal. Furthermore, ChildSafeNet and its partner organisations, Child Development Society, World Vision International Nepal, Child Fund Japan, Digital Broadcast Initiative Equal Access, Veda Creation Society and Love Green Nepal, conduct online safety awareness activities, including online and offline events, radio and TV programmes, children and young people's interactions, essay competitions, screening of videos and quiz contests. Besides organisations working on children's issues, including CWIN Nepal, Umbrella Organisation, and Voice of Children, will be conducting online safety awareness programmes.