Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Joni O'Sullivan is the mother of a 17 year old girl who attempted suicide twice because of online bullying. Joni took the brave decision to go public, first on Facebook, and then in the Limerick Leaderlast weekend, to highlight what was happening to her daughter and stop it for her daughter and others who are affected by similar bullying. Joni's and Zoe's story shows just how devastating the effects of cyberbullying can be. I will read out some of Joni's Facebook post, which is already public.

I never post long posts on Facebook and especially not of personal information but current events in my daughter's life have left me no alternative but to reach out on social media myself for help. As you are all aware suicide In Ireland is an epidemic at the moment, and suicide among teens from online bullying Is something we should never see. I can't help thinking of the parents of children who have committed suicide from bullying and wondering whether they were even aware it was going on, and whether they felt they had done enough to try to stop it. That's the reason I'm posting such sensitive details of what is going on for my daughter right now.

The post then features a photograph of Joni's daughter, Zoe, and the words, "This is my daughter Zoe and she is 17 tomorrow." Joni's post is fairly long. It describes the bullying, which has been taking place for more than a year. Zoe was receiving upwards of 50 messages a day calling her names, which I will not repeat in the Chamber. This resulted in her making two attempts at suicide. She stayed in bed for weeks and did not go to school as she tried to get away from the bullying. Joni's post continues:

No one will understand fear until you wake up to your teen screaming from inability to cope with online bullying coming in through their phone into what should be the safety of their own home... I will not lose my child because of online bullying. I will fight it. I lay beside her last night as she slept frightened to close my eyes in case I lost her.

We can all imagine what this mother and her young girl went through. It is the reason legislation is urgently needed.

In an interview published in the Limerick Leader last week, Joni O'Sullivan stated she was overwhelmed by the response to her post. Her daughter, Zoe, stated:

I just want the cyber-bullying to stop and for that video to not be shared and removed from the internet. A random disgusting video that was posted saying it was me, and messages I received telling me I was disgusting and to kill myself, caused me so much pain and made me want to die to escape the torment, and I never want to feel like that again.

Zoe also spoke of feeling good and her mother stated she believed she had done some service in bravely posting her message on Facebook. The Limerick Leader also notes that Joni O'Sullivan called for the progression of the Bill the Labour Party is presenting today to bring the current "laws into the 21st century and pass the current Bill on cyberbullying and enact it into law before we lose more young lives."

What happened to Zoe and many other young people shows how urgently we need to bring our laws up to date. The various social media platforms are used extensively by young people and need to be policed to protect those who are harassed and bullied in the horrific way I described. I highlighted the case of Zoe and Joni O'Sullivan to give a sense of what it is like for young persons who suffer online bullying and their parents.

Other measures required include education and awareness initiatives for young people and the appointment of a digital safety commissioner. We did not provide for such an appointment in the Bill because we understood this could result in it being disallowed on the basis that such a measure would give rise to costs on the Exchequer. As Deputy Brendan Howlin stated, we will be pleased to include such a provision in the Bill at a later stage.

The case I highlighted gives an understanding of the harm and damage being done by online bullying, which has become pervasive, particularly in the lives of young people. We must stop it and quickly implement the recommendations of the Law Reform Commission. I hope the Minister is in a position to indicate Government support for the Bill because we must proceed as quickly as possible. Young people are subject to online bullying every day, with some probably experiencing it as we speak.

Deputies will have read about a case that came before the courts last week. It was a completely different scenario from the one I described as it involved the exploitation of very young girls. We cannot allow this to continue. There are precedents and models available to us and we must enact this Bill as quickly as possible.

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