Achtung stalkers, women are ‘taking back the tech’

International campaign aims to end harassment and violence against women via technology.

KARACHI: We all know the downside of technology. It is every woman’s nightmare to find pictures or videos secretly taken by cell-phone cameras uploaded on Facebook or YouTube.

Enter ‘Take Back The Tech’, an international campaign to reclaim Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) to end harassment and violence against women.

Since the drive began in 2006, campaigners in more than 30 countries have used the internet, mobile phones, the radio and more to document and fight violence, threats and harassment against women.

The campaign began in Pakistan last year with the aim of spreading awareness among both men and women, urging them to take control of technology to protect freedom of expression and information. TBTT campaigners have to their credit bringing technologists, authors, writers and software programmers together to raise a voice against the abuse of technology, which is otherwise only restricted to NGOs or human rights activists.

Rabeea Arif, a communications designer and one of the campaigners, said that 95 per cent of aggressive behaviour, harassment, abuse and inappropriate images in cyberspace are directed towards women. “The key to privacy is to not post anything on a social network.”

Sonia, an executive manager at a company, recalls how terrified she was when an office peon was caught taking pictures of her from his cell phone. “Obviously the administration took action and they made him delete all the pictures,” she narrated. “But the memory of the incident still sends shivers down my spine,” she added with a shudder.

Jehan Ara, one of the chief campaigners of TBTT, told The Express Tribune that their collaborative campaign ‘16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence’ is taking place from November 25 to December 10, which is a call to everyone - especially women and girls - to take control of technology to end violence against women.

“It is an attempt to work with different local organisations that use ICTs in the form of websites, blogs, videos, digital stories and images, e-zines, e-bulletins and virtual worlds to stop violence against women,” she explained.

As part of the project, TBTT has given some small grants - up to $5,000 - to five organisations and individuals to make projects for the cause, she added.

TBTT exists to ensure that technology is not misused to perpetrate harassment and violence against women and young girls, so they can use cutting-edge technology safely - without fear.

Women can ‘take back the tech’, take control of technology to communicate, to express their views, to earn a living, to carry out research, to create safe spaces for themselves and so much more, according to campaigners.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 3^rd, 2010.