Opinion

Online bullies need to be held to account

The priest at the funeral of Co Tyrone teenager Ronan Hughes yesterday provided a sense of the deep shock and anger at the circumstances of this young man's tragic death, railing against those he holds responsible for the schoolboy's suicide.

Parents everywhere will share Father Benedict Fee's concern at those who used social media in a vile and reprehensible way, driving this 17-year-old to take his own life. Fr Fee told mourners at St Patrick's Church, Clonoe: ``Ronan did not take his own life but his life was taken from him, and somewhere in the world...is a man, a woman or a gang who are guilty of a heinous crime.''

Sadly, this is not the first case of a young person targeted by online bullies and it is clear from the number of related suicides which have been reported that this is a serious problem.

Police said Ronan had been ``tricked into posting images on a social networking site.''

This young man, described as a quiet and popular student and talented GAA player, had taken his concerns to his parents last week and they reported the matter to police.

The entire community will feel enormous sympathy for Ronan's family at this heartbreaking time.

However, putting the details of this matter into the public domain performs an important service to parents and young people everywhere, alerting them to the dangers posed by malicious individuals who misuse the internet.

Hopefully it will lead to conversations about the type of activity that takes place on social media, how teenagers can protect themselves and where they can turn to for help.

The police have issued advice on sharing personal information and using privacy settings while schools also have a role to play in warning pupils of the risks they face.

Ultimately, there needs to be greater awareness and understanding of the online world while those guilty of bullying and exploitation should be held to account.