VIEWPOINT: If you live in England, or in France or in Italy and you are tormented online by internet trolls, there is no hiding place.
Police in those countries regularly arrest and charge internet trolls.
Often the charge is one of assault. In one recent case in England a man who left sick messages on a tribute site for a girl who committed suicide was jailed.
But here in Ireland, and here in Donegal where we live, internet trolls – people who post hate-filled messages online – seem to be getting away with it.
Gardai will investigate the tragic death of Erin Gallagher for the coroner’s office. Perhaps a future inquest will shed more light on the horrendous abuse that poor 13-year-old girl was subjected to.
But there can be no place in our society for those who appear to take pleasure from tormenting ordinary decent people.
Many people online are targeted by trolls at some stage. Even here at Donegal Daily we have our own dedicated trolls who take pleasure – a very sick pleasure – in spouting vile evil comments about us and our readers, even on occasions poking fun at the dead.
We can ignore them. And we do.
But imagine how a young teenager has to deal with such vile behaviour.
We know of one school in this county where teenage boys and girls are quitting ask.fm and turning off their facebook pages.
They’ve had enough of the bullies.
Our political leaders need to urge Justice Minister Alan Shatter to take a tough new approach to the internet sewer rats who are slowly poisoning our society and a resource rich in so many good things.
The current policy of ignorance is just not good enough.
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