10 May 2013
Winnipeg, Manitoba
The Government of Canada recognizes that bullying and cyberbullying are serious concerns for many Canadian families and communities, and has reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring the safety and well-being of our most vulnerable citizens.
While bullying is not new, cyberbullying or bullying carried out by electronic means is a relatively recent phenomenon. Anyone can be a victim of cyberbullying. As with bullying more generally, young people are the most common targets of this type of behaviour. Bullying and cyberbullying can have a devastating impact on their victims and are particularly harmful to both the welfare and development of child victims.
The Government has undertaken education and awareness, prevention, and, enforcement activities to address the problems of bullying and cyberbullying.
“Bullying” and “cyberbullying” captures a wide range of behaviour. Some of this behaviour, such as name calling and social exclusion, can be hurtful but it is not necessarily criminal behaviour. There are several existing Criminal Code offences that do directly address the more serious actions often associated with bullying and cyberbullying. These include: counselling suicide; criminal harassment; uttering threats; defamatory libel; incitement of hatred; unauthorized use of computer; extortion; false messages; indecent telephone calls; harassing telephone calls; intimidation; and mischief in relation to data. The Criminal Code also includes comprehensive prohibitions against child pornography including against making, making available and distributing images that depict the sexual abuse of a young person under the age of 18 years. Courts also have the authority to order the removal of child pornography content from the internet.
In October 2012, the Federal, Provincial, and Territorial Ministers Responsible for Justice and Public Safety directed senior officials to review the Criminal Code to identify any potential gaps related to cyberbullying and, in particular, the non-consensual distribution of intimate images. In April 2013, the Honourable Rob Nicholson, the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, committed to expediting this review and developing Criminal Code reform options as necessary.
The Government of Canada is committed to protecting our young people. We will continue to build on these efforts, working with partners in the public and private sectors to address the problems of cyberbullying and bullying.
