“We must act now. For the new government taking office after the legislative elections, this issue must be addressed at its core,” said Sandra Ribeiro, President of the Commission for Citizenship and Gender Equality (CIG), regarding the increasing spread of misogynistic and violence-inciting content about women on various internet platforms.
Ribeiro, who leads the national body promoting gender equality, emphasized the significance of the issue as one of national importance that merits discussion in the electoral campaign.
“It is important to remember that the video allegedly depicting a girl being raped by three boys circulated on social media for several days, was viewed by at least 32,000 people, and no complaints were made,” she criticized, referencing an alleged incident in Loures involving three influencers.
“This cannot happen. It normalizes what is deeply negative and savage, which is not the society we desire in the 21st century,” she asserted.
Ribeiro warns of the existence of “a growing toxic male voice that insists a woman’s place is at home, advocating for a return to power where ‘my woman does not go out, nor behaves in certain ways.'”
“This is symptomatic of a larger issue,” she maintains.
Ribeiro identifies this as “the challenge of the decade.”
She expressed no doubt about the influence of such discourse, especially when “young people spend countless hours on social media, consuming TikToks and potentially other platforms unknown to adults.”
“Many individuals promoting this discourse present themselves as young millionaires, driving luxury cars, conducting mentorships for others to achieve success, and positioning themselves as superior to women, which obviously has an influence,” Ribeiro remarked.
Moreover, there is “easy access to pornography by adolescents,” with Ribeiro warning that if an 11 or 12-year-old accesses it, they “will develop a completely distorted view of sexual relationships, dating, and interactions.”
The CIG advocates for a “collective narrative of zero tolerance towards online violence against women,” calling for a united societal effort.
“We must neither shrug nor believe it does not concern us,” she urged.
Schools need to be highly attentive and adequately equipped, along with strong and efficient institutional measures to ensure that “people know where to report incidents, enabling immediate action,” she emphasized.
“We also need the assistance of the arts, sports, and public figures to speak out on this issue,” she stated, stressing that regulation is “essential.”
The European Union approved a directive in 2024 to criminalize cyber violence, with a 2027 deadline for member states to implement it in their legislation.
“We do not have that amount of time. If we can only address the issue by 2027, numerous tragedies will have occurred by then, and the problems will have evolved,” Ribeiro warned.
She advocates for collaboration with technology companies and the owners of digital platforms to possibly establish voluntary agreements aimed at regulation, more control, and efficient mechanisms to promptly detect and eliminate issues.
“If we fail to regulate, we will completely lose control over what is viewed and done,” Ribeiro cautioned.
Ribeiro notes “studies indicating that boys are dropping out of school earlier, adopting more conservative political positions, and leaning towards the far-right.”
“A growing gap is emerging between boys and girls, which is concerning,” she stated.
