THE Protection from Harassment Act came into affect, which will offer greater protection for those being harassed, stalked and bullied on a number of different platforms.
While the Act caters for the protection against harassment by means of abusive electronic communication (via social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook or Mxit), sexual harassment and stalking, its most significant protection is for children affected by bullying.
What’s significant about this Act is that any person, who has an interest in the well-being of the person being harassed, can apply for a protection order on that person’s behalf.
This has to be done with the harassed person’s consent, unless the court finds the person is unable to give consent.
The Act also allows children under 18 to apply for a protection order. Someone may also, on behalf of a child, apply for a protection order, without the consent of the minor’s parents or legal guardians.
Carol van Tonder from the Durban North uMhlanga Crisis Team said the Act will send a stern message to bullies.
“I think it’s an excellent Act, specially for the cyber bullying. Families need to share this information with their children, so they know there could be recourse for their actions,” she said.
According to the KwaZulu-Natal Law Society, the Act is sensitive to harassment in the digital age. It caters for circumstances in which the complainant is unaware of the harasser’s personal details or where the complainant is being subjected to abuse via anonymous threatening or offensive SMSes, Twitter messages or e-mails.
The Act empowers the magistrate’s court to issue a directive and order electronic communications service providers to provide it with the full name, identity number and address of the harasser sending the text messages, tweets or e-mails.
It may order a member of the SAPS to carry out an investigation into the harassment, with the aim of obtaining the name and address of a harasser whose personal details are unknown to the complainant.
