Amman, Nov. 27 (Petra) – Minister of Social Development and Head of the Inter-Ministerial Committee for Women's Empowerment, Wafaa Bani Mustafa, on Thursday opened extensive dialogue sessions to discuss digital violence against women and girls and mechanisms to address the phenomenon.
Talking at the event, Bani Mustafa called for expanding regional cooperation and exchanging expertise to confront the increasing forms of violence originating from technology and digital media.
The minister also noted the sessions coincided with the recent launch of the global the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence (GBV), under the patronage of Her Royal Highness Princess Basma bint Talal.
On necessary action, she stressed the need to develop a legislative and institutional framework that keeps pace with technological advancements and ensures women's "safe" access to the digital space without threats to their privacy and rights.
The launch of today's sessions coincides with the campaign against violence, which this year is themed: "Unite to End Digital Violence Against All Women and Girls," amidst the rapidly evolving challenges posed by the digital revolution and its social, economic, and cultural impacts, she pointed out.
The minister noted the virtual world, despite its advantages in terms of easy access to knowledge, learning, and participation, has become a space fraught with the risks of online exploitation and abuse, which requires a unified and decisive response to protect future generations from this type of crime.
The minsiters said international figures reflect the scale of the global crisis, with the percentage of women who have experienced some form of digital violence ranging from 16% to 58%.
Meanwhile, she stated United Nations reports show that 38% of women have experienced direct digital abuse, 67% of cases involve defamation, 66% on repeated online harassment, and 63% on identity theft.
Bani Mustafa also warned of the growing impact of deepfakes, which target women in 99% of cases, making them "one of the most dangerous tools for blackmail and psychological abuse." The minister indicated that some Arab statistics indicate that 80% of victims of digital violence in the region are women.
On its efforts so far, she said Jordan continues to implement a "comprehensive" national policy to protect women from violence, including digital level, by strengthening the partnership between the Ministry of Social Development, the Cybercrime Unit, and civil society organizations to provide legal and psychological support to victims and encourage reporting.
Additionally, she reviewed endeavors of the Public Security Directorate (PSD), which established a special cybercrime department in 2008 and then developed it into the Cybercrime Unit in 2015.
The minister noted the Kingdom also issued Cybercrime Law No. 27 in the same year to address violations and define penalties.
Referred to digital violence impact on women’s participation in public life, she said a study by the Jordanian National Commission for Women’s Affairs showed that 63% of influential women suffered cyber violence and cyberbullying.
92% of these victims had their mental health affected, while the violence-related impacts extended to their social relationships by 79%, she pointed out.
//Petra// AG
