Hi Agony Aunt
My name is Thembi and I live in Soweto. I have a huge problem,
There are these two grade 12 boys at my school that have started bullying my friend and I on Facebook. It all started as very innocent, they wanted to be our friends and we accepted them but now they keep asking us for nudes and when we refuse, they bully us. They threaten to photoshop our pics and turn into nudes. We don’t know what to do and there are no rules at our school that can deal with them should we report them- so please help us!
Dear Thembi,
Thank you for writing. The first thing you should do without wasting any time is report them to your school principle, Facebook, parents and to the police. Every school has rules that protect against bullying, they might not necessarily be cyber bullying rules but remember cyberbullying is a form of bullying so your school might definitely have rules against that too.
Secondly, you should report to your parents or other trusted adults because they will help you report to the police and provide the necessary support you need right now. Having someone bully you and threaten to photoshop your picture on nudes is a very disturbing thing and so you must talk to your trusted adults and seek their help.
Lastly and maybe more importantly, you should report to the police because sharing nudes especially involving minors is a very serious crime as it is regarded as child pornography. Engaging in child pornography either by creating, possessing or distributing is a criminal offense punishable by law. Even though those two boys have not received anything from you, the mere fact that they are soliciting and even threatening you to get you to send them the nudes, might in itself be an offence. The police will act according to the Protection from Harrassment Act of 2011, a law designed to protect individuals like yourself who are being bullied and/or harassed both on online and in person. The police might also act according to the Films and Publications Act where child pornography is a serious crime.
So please do not waste any time and report these two boys to put a stop to what they are doing to you and maybe to others too.
Before and even after you report, make sure to store any evidence of their bullying and threats. This will help you with your case as evidence is always important to have. You should also report and block them on Facebook but don’t leave it there because even after you have blocked them, they can still go ahead and act on their threats so report them on Facebook, block them and report them to the police, your school and guardians.
You and your friend should also call Childline on their toll free number and talk to a trained counsellor about your situation. Call Childline on 08000 55555.
All the best Thembie and thank you again for contacting me.
Yours,
Social Media Agony Aunt