Cyberbullying network leaves students living in fear

WESTERN BUREAU:

One Montego Bay high school student now requires her mother's daily protection, while another is being closely monitored as police investigate a cyberbullying network targeting students and families across several academic institutions in St James.

Three students were taken into custody for questioning on Monday following the latest incident, which involved social media posts falsely claiming a teenage girl was being sexually abused by her father.

The allegations, relatives insist, were entirely fabricated and formed part of a campaign of online harassment that has spread across multiple schools and social media platforms.

Senior Superintendent of Police Aaron Samuels, commander of the St James Division, told TVJ News that the police first became aware of a series of cyberbullying incidents involving students from several schools last year.

"Coming out of that, a lot of work was done in terms of meeting with parents at school, having mediation sessions and lectures regarding cyberbullying," Samuels said.

He said the incidents appeared to have subsided before resurfacing over the Father's Day weekend, prompting an urgent police response.

"We now have three persons in custody and we have recorded statements from persons involved in the matter," he disclosed.

Samuels described the situation as deeply concerning, warning that cyberbullying could lead to serious psychological and reputational damage to victims.

For one mother, whose teenage daughter attends a prominent Montego Bay high school, those consequences have become a daily reality.

The Montego Bay mother said she has repeatedly closed her business in order to escort her daughter to and from school, fearful that threats made online could spill into the real world.

"I am at the school almost every day to protect my daughter," said the mother, whose name The Gleaner will not use in order to maintain her daughter's privacy. 

The harassment began in December last year when photographs of her daughter and another student were allegedly used to create fake social media pages.

According to the mother, the pages were designed to make it appear as though the girls were posting degrading comments about themselves, falsely portraying them as sexually promiscuous and seeking attention from boys.

She said the posts spread rapidly, leaving many people convinced the accounts were genuine.

"My daughter was downtown one day and people were pointing at her because they believed what they saw online," the mother recounted.

She said she and another parent reported the matter to police and school officials, prompting investigations at the time.

She believes students from several other schools in St James have been involved in the harassment campaign.

The mother said the attacks have since escalated beyond the students themselves.

The most recent post was the false allegation that a student's father had sexually abused her, a claim the child's family vehemently denies.

"They are attacking families now. They are attacking parents," said the mother with whom The Gleaner spoke.

The campaign has left some parents fearing for their children's safety and emotional wellbeing.

The mother said she recently had to wait outside an examination centre while her daughter sat Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate examinations because of fears she could be confronted.

She also expressed concern about another student who, she said, has been left emotionally devastated by the ordeal.

"I don't want it to be that one day I get up and hear that my daughter got hurt or that somebody harms themselves because of this," she said.

Kayon Whyne, principal of Mount Alvernia High School, one of the affected institutions, said schools are struggling to cope with a new and increasingly sophisticated form of bullying.

"Our approach to bullying is just not enough. We don't have the resources to fight what is happening. It's nasty," Whyne said.

She argued that Jamaica's curriculum must evolve to address online behaviour, cyberbullying and the responsible use of social media.

"We need to rewrite our curriculum so that it speaks to these things," she said.

Whyne disclosed that one Mount Alvernia student was expelled last year following an investigation into cyberbullying activities. She nipped it in the bud early and noted that none of her students are involved in the crimes being perpetrated by others.

She said the problem has extended beyond a single school and now involves students across the education region.

The principal revealed that during questioning by police earlier this month, one student from another institution allegedly warned that Mount Alvernia students would continue to face harassment if disciplinary action was taken against her.

"She said if she got expelled, this would not stop," Whyne recalled.

Days later, a fresh wave of online attacks emerged.

The veteran educator blamed weak parenting for contributing to the crisis, arguing that many parents have failed to instill the values needed to prevent such behaviour.

"Parents are not parenting," she said.

"There was a time they attacked each other, but now they are attacking parents too."

Whyne said teachers and administrators have also become targets, while some parents who ignored warning signs in the past are now experiencing the consequences firsthand.

Samuels said investigators would continue to pursue those responsible and warned that there would be no tolerance for cyberbullying or any behaviour that threatens the safety and wellbeing of students.

janet.silvera@gleanerjm.com