The message of the 16-day global campaign against violence against women that concluded a few days ago was – ‘The violence happening in society has now spread to the digital space as well, let us all take the initiative to end such digital violence.’ As part of the campaign, many rallies, seminars and discussion programs were held in Nepal as well. However, there was not much debate about this in the digital space.

The violence in the digital space is so widespread that our monitoring bodies are not enough, the law is not enough. And, society is also not able to use the digital infrastructure properly. Therefore, the debate on ending digital violence needs to be continuous not only in the 16-day campaign, but also in the digital space.

The Internet has become a highway of information and knowledge. We are easily communicating with our relatives living in one corner of the world. Not only is news being exchanged, but new technologies and inventions, languages, arts, culture, traditional knowledge and skills are also being communicated through the Internet. Therefore, the Internet has become a necessary support for human civilization. But the situation is also such that discrimination, violence and harmful knowledge are also being communicated through this highway.

This is the digital age, meaning that everything has become digital here. Today, people's personal and confidential details are available on some digital platform. And, anyone who meets in the digital space is at risk of becoming a victim of digital violence at any time. Moreover, the digital space has become even more unsafe for women and girls than the physical society. 

More than half of women, girls, children, gender and sexual minorities, and women from marginalized communities around the world are experiencing problems such as digital violence, cybercrime, and online bullying. Which has helped to further strengthen and expand gender inequality. 

Today's digital generation does not extend a hand to introduce themselves to the person they like when they meet, but rather searches on social media to find out everything and tries to build relationships online. The internet has become an essential commodity for them, like a home and shelter. Rather than family gatherings, relatives, or society at home, they are more interested in digital platforms and online gaming. For them, whether it is education, entertainment, or social relationships, it is possible only online. In fact, the world of the digital generation is online. And, while enjoying themselves online, there are also those who do not know when they have been subjected to violence or committed violence.

Such violence has become easier, especially through social media. Stalking, chatting, exchanging photos, making video calls, and forming romantic relationships on the network, but when the relationship does not continue, then the same previous photos and confidential information are made public, defrauding financially, creating deepfakes and misleading content and causing suffering. Such acts have ruined the lives of many women and girls. 

In addition, artists, journalists, politicians, and female content creators who live in public are experiencing different types of violence. Hate speech, abuse, threats, immoral comments about women's bodies and organs, obscene comments, and racially discriminatory abuse have now become commonplace for social media users. 

More than 75 percent of the total population worldwide uses the internet. In Nepal, a person is using more than one internet service provider. Therefore, it is difficult to verify its statistics. However, according to the National Census 2078, 73 percent of Nepalis are smartphone users. It is estimated that the number of social media users has exceeded 15 million. This number is increasing day by day. 

According to a UN Women report, 56 percent of women and girls worldwide are experiencing online violence in 2025, and such violence is even more terrible for women from Dalit, Madhesi, disabled, and sexual and gender minority communities. 

According to the Cyber ​​Bureau of Nepal Police, most of the cases of digital violence related to women and children are currently character assassination, blackmail, extortion, revenge porn, and fraud. The bureau has received 2,900 complaints of such serious digital violence during the period from Shrawan to mid-Kartik of the fiscal year 2082/083. Last year, about 8,000 complaints were received. While the number of girls and women in the age group of 19 to 25 years among those who are subjected to such violence is high. 

These cases that have reached the police are only of a serious nature. While on social media, there is no complaint for violence such as making obscene comments on someone's photo, making discriminatory comments about someone's caste, religion, community, body part or color, liking such comments and encouraging people with wrong intentions. Nor is there a situation where anyone can file a complaint and bring the guilty to justice in such incidents. Because the number of people who do such things is so large on the network that it is as if patriarchy has laid the foundation on the network even earlier than in society.

So the digital generation is good at technology. But there is another generation in society - who does not know how to keep a good password, does not know how to adjust the settings of their own phones for data security and personal safety. And, taking advantage of that, the number of people who commit criminal acts is increasing.

Now every state body is digitizing public services. We want to build a digital society with 21st century technology. But what is the point of such a digital society if that digital society lags behind the physical society? Therefore, the violence, discrimination and traditional harmful thinking prevalent in the digital space must end.

The government should formulate the necessary policies and laws to address such violence in the digital space. The digital generation should be aware and conscious to end digital violence. Every internet user needs to take a pledge that ‘I will not commit, tolerate or support digital violence’.