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LABOUR SENATOR LORRAINE Higgins has deleted her professional Facebook page after being subjected to a “tirade of abuse”.
Higgins told TheJournal.ie that she decided to delete the page after being called a ‘c**t’ and told she should have been aborted. She also received death threats.
During her unsuccessful European election campaign, Higgins was told she would be “hatcheted in the face”.
The Galway-based Senator said that she initially tried to “brush off” the abuse, telling herself ‘This comes with the territory, you have to get on with it’. However, she took action after her family became upset when the level of threats increased.
Higgins stressed that “for the most part” the people who engaged with her page were “decent” but said she had to take action when the volume of trolling targeting her and her supporters continued to increase.
I asked myself: ‘Do I really need to look at it first thing in the morning?’
Higgins, a qualified barrister, said that she has almost completed a new cyber bullying Bill that proposes more serious punishments for online trolls.
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She noted that she has always had an interest in cyber bullying but became more involved in the area when victims contacted her after she was bullied herself.
The Senator said that having a debate online is fine but “trying to degrade me and humiliate me is not the way to do it”.
I’m not talking about people expressing their opinion, I’m talking about direct threats.
There has to be deterrent and sanctions for people.
Higgins stated that if the harassment had taken place in public, the perpetrators would have been arrested.
She added that when she contacted the people who had threatened her directly, they were “cowardly” and didn’t want to talk.
Legal framework
In late 2013, the then Communications Minister Pat Rabbitte set up the Internet Content Governance Advisory Group to report to him on a range of issues related to online content.
The group made a range of recommendations in June 2014, including that the Communications Regulation Act be amended to include ‘electronic communications’ deemed “grossly offensive, indecent, obscene or menacing”. An implementation group was set up by the Government in July and will report back by the end of the year.
At present, the Law Reform Commission is also reviewing online-related issues such as cyber bullying.
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There must b no straws left with Labour and Fine Gael grasping at them. Must not be any
” Reasonable people ” left in Ireland to listen to their lies and exaggerating about every little thing, someone curses and someone throws a water balloon and they government shouts ISIS terrorists riot, and calls in the riot squad and the helicopters. The state throws Irish citizens around the streets spray children with pepper spray beat the legs off pensioners artists teachers farmers and fishermen in the Corrib and the state and the Taoiseach complement the Gardaí for their restraint. We are the ones showing the restraint. The 2nd Republic is coming…….. the reasonable people are bringing it to your door.
Death Threats and some comments are definitely to be condemed!
Lorraine doesnt like constructive criticism also, however and from any of her TV appearances, she has shown that on a scale of 1 to 10, her likability rating would not even register on the scale!!!
If protesters wish to escalate things out of frustration that the Government has not yet broken up Irish Water or called a general election, threats are violence are not the way. Protesters should be targeting the infrastructure that FG/Lab politicians use. Make it difficult for them to use their constituency offices or attend meetings or attend Leinster house or whatever. If you have information that is damaging, share it with the media.Make them ineffective at whatever it is they want to do, they will get stressed out and give up. Frustrating them is ok, harassment is not.
I find it insulting that after we made it clear in the European elections that we didn’t want her representing us in any capacity, she got a cushy job in the seanad courtesy of mr kenny. I think the taoiseachs ability to put several people in the seanad without the people having any say is very undemocratic. As for her feelings I think our money will certainly more than pay for the counselling she’ll need for the stress this has caused. I’m willing to take her salary for a few online insults and threats any day.
Havardi welcome to the illusion of democracy, it’s really a pick a red, green or blue dictator.. But that would be an insult to most dictators as usually even though they are ruthless they usually care about their country and its citizens
Yes she gets a senators wage 65k, extra Leaders allowance 25k and on top of that over 3k a month expenses.
Niiiiiice
And Barristers can get a thousand euros a day per client when they go to court. AS WELL.
Now if one were to speak cynically, one would consider this storm in a teacu quite a coincidence. Especially that the Very one beavering away as Endas lapdog to censor social media has, a week later, had this problem and HAD to close her SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNT.
I’m not a betting woman, but what are the odds?
How stupid do Labour think we are,they’re all lining up like ducks each day quacking about victimisation and Internet trolls,the truth is they don’t like what they can’t control,the Internet is not RTÉ and the newspapers,Erdogan in Turkey tried and failed to censor online discourse so knock yourself out Lorraine. P.S. We remember your appalling recent election campaign
Lorraine has some kind of anti-charisma, as demonstrated in her recent campaign. Though I’m sure we’d all agree that those who post abuse on fb pages are morons.
Is she trying to get our sympathy? Go on any SF TD’s twitter or facebook pages and they comments like this thrown at them every day of the week yet I never hear them complaining about the abuse.
I appreciate the fact that Seanie can be loyal to his idea of the party he supports, which includes his criticism of its failing leadership, while the YFG and Labour douchebags still can’t get their heads around the concept of “realisation”.
• Trapping a woman in her car while terrorising her and physically yes physically attacking her is not real ?
• Threatening women at their workplace by threatening to bomb it is not real ?
• Threatening to protest outside a mans family home and terrorising his family is not real ?
So back off with your idiotic dumbfounded comment about us “Young” not being real your a grown man and you can’t see that this behaviour is barbaric and must not continue or someone is going to get hurt……. And I’m not taking paper cuts !
This government would love to silence everyone if they could.What a load of nonsense we are to believe politicians are so sensitive words hurt them.Try walking through Dublin and having a real look at what children are wearing and have a smell of the older people who can’t afford to wash their clothes.I have a few words I’d like to call labour politicians too.
I don’t subscribe to any comments like the one mentioned it’s inexcusable but if they think they have it bad now wait till the General election now that is one I will subscribe to I am waiting patently for that day to come
Yes the General election where the worst outcome for the current Government is to end up in opposition with the same salaries and perks and none of the responsibilities. Hardly a punishment now, is it?
I think this anger was avoidable if the government (worst one in the history of the state) listened to the people who are homeless, hungry , out of work . We are waiting for the deal Noonan and Kenny said were getting back from Europe . What about all the tax in take where is all this money going?
No answers from government not listening so people got angry . If you are in government on €92,000 a year plus expenses and have a thick skin to step over impoverished people and be greedy by taking expenses as a politician you should have the same thick skin for the abuse some electorate release at you.
Don’t worry labour and Fine Gael finished in Ireland.
School children get cyberbullied so bad they kill themselves, the state does nothing, Labour appointee gets some abuse and its break out the thought police.
Where in the article are these threats linked to water protests. All these government lackeys and their associated trolls are trying to do is to discredit the genuine grievances of the water protests. Anybody on Facebook can make threats, they can even be engineered. This government has set out on a course of silencing protest, be it by manufacturing trolls and supposed threats or by attempting to censor social media. Shower of fascists.
This is the same individual who photoshopped dustin the turkeys head onto a picture of Luke Flanagan MEP. Then used it in her election campaign. Enough said. I leave you to draw your own conclusions.
Absolutely shameful that any person could submit people to this abuse. In no way is this right but Higgins has to remember that it was only 4 years ago when her party and Fine Gael were doing the same to Fianna Fáil by making comments in the media. The Presidential Election there was also a very dirty campaign and a lot of dirty things were thrown around to get Michael Dee in.
Same senator who resorted to childish attacks on Ming during that election. As Pontius pointed out above she did plenty of trolling herself during that election campaign!
Adam
You cannot use the term troll for these individuals. They are psychopathic I divi duals who require either compulsory psychiatric teeatment or prison time.
So sayeth Hugh Ritchie ‘Bucks’ Rogers Cavanagh, spouting his unique brand of inane, condescending, conformist claptrap, all the way from the Great White North or thereaboots…..!!
All politicians very keen on Internet censorship, I wonder why ? I suppose we would all be fine we can get our news from RTE and Newstalk and Independent newspapers.
Lorraine who was appointed to the senate and then polled miserably in the Euro Election should be well aware that people are angry with the Labour party and people express that online and elsewhere,,,the vast majority of people do not threaten or post vile personal abuse which of course is always wrong…….
Internet zombies who puke vitriol all over anti-social media and the now unreadable/boring comments sections should be shown patience and understanding. Poor feckers are trying to compensate or vent for some want in their own lives. If you can’t be civilised ask yourself why.
What are the current laws on this kind o thing out of interest? I know from Stan Collymore’s twitter he screengrabs abuse and reports to the police. The punishment should be the equivalent of whatever the law says regarding abusive behaviour in public.
It’s just thuggish behavior and it’s unacceptable. Lot of thugs are marching in this protest only to start trouble if some of these thugs were asked what the protest was about they would not know
Irish society is now breaking down into those who believe in standards in society and the rule of law and the opposite side who think anything is acceptable in the name of ‘protest’. Let battle commence.
These anti-water charge people are going way too far. Sending someone such horrible messages is abominable and disgusting and those responsible are disgraceful.
It’s crazy how politicians take comments fueled by frustration/discontent so seriously. EVERYONE who puts themselves in the public eye via the internet opens themselves up to abuse and trolling, the smart ones don’t whine about it, ignore it and just get on with whatever they normally do.
IF I was a labour senator or T.D , I would want to delete myself to ,Sorry I have little sympathy for those that sell their principles for a seat ,Shame on those that support austerity on the Irish people ,Water tax is the latest con ,
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