Parliament for a separate criminal offense against harassment on the internet
Published: Thursday, Dec 21st 2023, 10:51
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Parliament wants to create a separate criminal offense against cyberbullying. Like the National Council, the Council of States adopted a corresponding parliamentary initiative by Aargau SP National Councillor Gabriela Suter on Thursday.
The small chamber reached its decision by 23 votes to 18, with no abstentions. It thus followed a strong minority of its Legal Affairs Committee (RK-S). The National Council had already adopted the initiative in December 2022. The National Council's Legal Affairs Committee can now draft a bill.
Content can hardly be deleted
The systematic insulting, threatening, exposing or harassing of people via digital communication channels has increased significantly in recent years, Suter explained her initiative. The perpetrators can remain anonymous, the content is available around the clock and can hardly be deleted.
According to Suter, the pressure on those attacked is very high. And today's criminal law, which is designed for individual acts, does not do justice to the fact that it often involves a multitude of acts and behaviors.
The majority of the Council of States' preliminary committee saw no need for an additional criminal provision. In the discussion on the revision of sexual criminal law, the proposal to include an article against cyberbullying did not prevail. In addition, the National Council's Legal Affairs Committee is currently working on a bill on stalking.
Criminal offenses exist
There are already criminal offenses that can be used to prosecute cyberbullying, including coercion or threats, said committee spokesperson Beat Rieder (center/VS). The problem lies in the fact that public prosecutors must have the means to actually punish such acts.
The minority of the Council of States committee, on the other hand, took the view that the problem needed to be tackled urgently. Open questions as to how exactly the Criminal Code should be amended could be answered in a second phase.
Daniel Jositsch (SP/ZH), speaking on behalf of the minority, said that technological developments had given defamation offenses or threats a new dimension. Conventional criminal offenses concern petty crimes. This would not solve the problem.
©Keystone/SDA
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