PalThink Academy trainers have conducted an awareness workshop at the Ajyal Association for Creativity and Development in West Gaza on ‘Violence Against Women in the Digital Space,’ as part of the “PalThink Academy for Democracy and Human Rights – Phase II” project, supported by the German Federal Foreign Office’s funds by ifa’s Funding Programme zivik.

The young trainers had been prepared through a training program enabling them to actively participate in the civil society by implementing a series of awareness workshops through cooperation and networking with CSOs in the Gaza Strip.

Soundos Sabra opened the workshop by welcoming the attendees and highlighting the main objectives of the Academy. She explained the goals of the meeting and its importance in raising awareness about digital human rights and the violations faced by women in the digital space among Palestinian youth.

For her part, Diana Fattouh, started the workshop with an ice-breaking activity to build interaction between the participants and the young trainers. She then delved into the concepts of digital human rights, providing detailed explanations about human rights, their characteristics, sources, and the legal protection they receive.

She further explained the concept of digital human rights, elaborating on specific digital rights, such as the right to access the internet, the right to freedom of opinion, expression, and information, the right to peaceful assembly and association in the digital space, and concluded with discussions on the right to privacy and data protection.

On her part, Rama Al-Louh, continued the workshop by discussing the concept of cybercrimes extensively. She addressed various forms of cyber harassment, cyber blackmail, hacking, electronic espionage, and cyberbullying.

Rama also explored the concept of digital security and ways to ensure the protection of personal accounts on social media platforms, especially Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. She provided practical guidance on how to report cyber violence and collaborate with relevant authorities to seek support and assistance in such situations.

The workshop witnessed an interactive and fruitful dialogue among the young trainees and their peers, as they shared personal stories and experiences.