The last couple of months have been marked with the ‘leak’ of multiple sex tapes and nudes. Most of them feature women, and as always, netizens find that it is their fault, as if they are the ones that send the videos to everyone who has laid their eyes on them. Sometimes it is even clear that they were filmed without their knowledge. For starters, Rwanda five years ago adopted the law on prevention and punishment of cyber-crimes, with some penalties going up to 15 years in prison. For the distribution of pornographic images, the penalty goes up to five years in prison, and seven years if it is child pornography. Well, it is one thing to distribute pornography featuring adults who want it to be shared, and it is another to “leak” it, as it is mostly referred to. In most cases, this action is also referred to as “revenge porn”, which is the distribution of sexually explicit images or videos of someone without their consent, often with the intent to humiliate or embarrass them. The images or videos may be taken or shared by an ex-partner, friend, or acquaintance. Most victims of revenge porn are women and under 30 years of age. Several reports say that among the few reasons for this include the fact that women are more likely to be targeted by sexual harassment and abuse, and that women are more likely to be blamed for revenge porn, even if they did not consent to the images being shared. Another unverifiable theory is that women are more likely to share their nude photos or videos to their sexual partners. Despite the fact that revenge porn can have a devastating impact on the victim's life, it is almost unheard of for the perpetrators to be tried in court. Victims may experience depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, and social isolation. They may also lose their jobs or be forced to relocate somewhere else. Many of its victims also consider suicide. Nevertheless, the apparent ‘long arm of the law’ doesn’t seem that long when it comes to punishing some of the most common cybercrimes, particularly online harassment and cyberstalking. But why is that? The answer is simple. Perpetrators of online violence and a reasonable number of netizens are not aware that these are crimes, or if they do real harm anyway. Public reaction has also ensured that victims of these crimes are switched to perpetrators, not to mention that more often than not, crimes are committed if perpetrators are sure they won’t face any repercussions. If the perpetrators are likely to get away with the offense, then whoever intends to commit the crime won’t find litigation as a limiting factor. Article 35 of the cyber law determines up to two years of imprisonment for people found guilty of intentionally using computer or a computer system to display, distribute, or to publish indecent documents, sounds, pictures, or videos to harass or threaten with the intent to place another person in distress or fear. This crime is called cyber-stalking. But the wide discrepancy between the penalties given to perpetrators of pornography publication- which maybe consensual, and cyber-stalking- which is non-consensual and whose effects are long-lasting, is rather unsettling. The former gets up to five years, and the latter gets up to two years. Furthermore, for cyber-stalking, one can be prosecuted only upon complaint of the offended person. For justice to be served, victims, who have to pick up the remains of their dignity while going through grief, are expected to go through the back-and-forth wrangles to prove they were really offended. Some people who commit crimes- such as blackmail- on social media also end up getting away with it, simply because the victim has not sued them. A case in point is a year ago when a highly followed social media user threatened to 'leak' an artiste's sex tape. ALSO READ: Rwandan artiste threatened with sex tape leak- what the law says While Rwanda’s efforts in punishing cybercrimes are relatively commendable, this sets cyber-stalking apart from the rest of the crimes, despite being one of the most committed. In their research on the media reporting on online violence against women in Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania, DW Akademie found that besides trivializing online violence against women, its victims are also sexualized, and characterized as the perpetrators. This, however, doesn’t mean that there is nothing more we can do. Just like awareness campaigns are done to fight other crimes, the ones carried out to inform people about cybercrimes should also specifically address revenge porn as a crime with serious consequences. Law enforcement should also ensure that it is not tolerated, and always let it be known that way. We can also educate ourselves more on cybercrimes so that we don’t commit them, or that in case we face them, we know our rights and the right institutions we can report to. We should also encourage victims to report such crimes, in addition to mental health support.
