LocationsScrolling Toward Change: UNDP Asia-Pacific’s Digital Activism Against Online Violence
December 10, 2025
“Mid”, “clown”, “ran over”, “delulu”. These are among the more printable terms shaping digital violence trends across various digital platforms. The toll on society, especially women and girls, reflects a familiar paradox: technology that is meant to open doors for education, empowerment, social connections and essential services is shutting women out. Today, online spaces are turning hostile and violent, with a reported 44% of the world’s women and girls lacking access to legal protection from digital abuse.
Many incidents of digital violence go unreported by the victims due to shame and social stigma, lack of effective justice systems and fear of retaliation. Yet according to a UN Women article, nearly 40% of women have faced abuse online, while 80% have reported witnessing it. In the Asia-Pacific region, 60% of women parliamentarians have endured online gender-based violence.
“Cyberstalking, AI-driven deepfakes, doxing, and online gender-based violence — from misogynistic memes to targeted harassment — do not remain confined to the digital sphere. They spill into real life, disproportionately silencing women and girls, weakening democratic participation and obstructing social inclusion,” says Kanni Wignaraja, UN Assistant Secretary-General and UNDP’s Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific. “Yet only one-third of countries worldwide have laws to protect them. That gap is unacceptable.”
Every year, the United Nations' international campaign, 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence runs from 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, through 10 December, International Human Rights Day. This year’s theme, “UNiTE to End Digital Violence against All Women and Girls,” has offered a crucial opportunity for stakeholders to ensure that digital transformation is safe, inclusive and empowering for all.
"Technology should open doors, not slam them shut for women," says UNDP’s Regional Director Kanni Wignaraja. UNDP works with governments, tech companies, civil society, and partners to address the systemic gaps that enable violence against women, both online and offline. Across the Asia-Pacific region, countries are advancing efforts to make digital spaces safer and more inclusive. Here’s how:
Pakistan: Women lawyers, national strategy address technology-facilitated gender-based violence
As Pakistan embraces digital transformation, women and marginalized groups face a troubling rise in technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV). With 75.2% of the population connected via cellular mobile, risks are growing alongside connectivity. Digital abuse compromises the safety, mental well-being, access to education, employment, and civic participation of affected individuals.
To commemorate the 16 Days of Activism against online abuse, the Balochistan Bar Council and UNDP under the European Union (EU) funded ‘Deliver Justice Project’, gathered over 85 women lawyers in Quetta for the second annual Women Lawyers Conference. Discussions focused on the nature of TFGBV cases, gaps in legal framework, evidence collection and steps to create safer online spaces for women, girls and marginalized groups.
As Jeroen Willems, Head of Cooperation for the EU Delegation to Pakistan, noted, “AI and ICT bring many advantages, but they also introduce challenges and pitfalls such as [TFGBV]. We are proud to support women lawyers to address these challenges, strengthen access to justice, enhance representation, and break long-standing barriers.”
UNDP through the TFGBV initiative has also partnered with the Ministry of Human Rights, Ministry of Law and Justice, FIA, National Commission for Human Rights, National Commission on the Status of Women, and the Federal Ombudsperson Secretariat for Protection against Harassment, to develop the country’s TFGBV Strategy. The strategy establishes a coordinated framework for safer, more inclusive digital and offline environment by empowering survivors, strengthening access to justice, and enabling national and provincial ownership to sustainably address TFGBV.
Sri Lanka: New reporting platform for hate content
Over the past five years, Sri Lanka has also witnessed the destructive impacts of hate content both online and offline. According to a 2025 UNFPA and UN Women research, reported incidents to the Sri Lanka computer emergency readiness team (SLCERT) increased from 2,969 in 2019 to 20,219 in 2023. Of the total online violence complaints received by SLCERT, 58% were reported by girls and women.
In response to closing systemic gaps in gender-based violence (GBV) prevention and response, the “Ensuring Justice for Survivors of SGBV” project was designed and implemented by UNDP in coordination with UNFPA, working together with the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) with funding from the Government of Canada. The five-year project launched in 2023 through SLCERT is creating a unified, victim-friendly online reporting platform that connects citizens to relevant authorities and streamlines previously fragmented cybercrime and harassment reporting.
Indonesia: Training police on digital sex crime investigation techniques
Police officers are among the frontline responders poised to deliver justice and reparations for survivors of violence through documentation and protection. In 2025 alone, the Indonesian National Police recorded 36,148 GBV cases, but only 12.8% were resolved as reported by an Indonesian news agency. This highlights the role of effective reporting systems in providing justice for victims and survivors.
To address this gap, the GBV Initiative Project, led by UNDP Indonesia’s Democratic Governance and Poverty Reduction Unit (DGPRU), is breaking new ground in the fight against TFGBV. The project is strengthening the capacity of the Indonesian National Police and Jakarta Metropolitan Police to handle digital sex crime through a survivor-centered approach by training police on investigation techniques, establishing victim-centric reporting, and educating the public on digital gender-based violence.
Bangladesh: Confronting digital violence against women in politics ahead of elections
In Bangladesh, the 16 Days of Activism comes at a critical political moment, with national elections increasing risks for women in public life. Women leaders, candidates, activists, and outspoken commentators in political spaces face continuous offline and online violence—from smear campaigns and gendered hate speech to threats, cyberstalking, and manipulated images. These attacks inflict psychological harm, silence political voices, and discourage women’s participation in democratic processes.
To address this, UNDP and UN Women, supported by Governments of Norway and Switzerland, convened a dialogue on 7th December with political parties, young leaders, civil society, and gender experts on digital and offline barriers faced by women in politics. Recommendations emerging from the discussion included the establishment of an Election Commission to compile, adopt, and enforce a dedicated code of conduct for political parties and candidates to prevent digital violence against women and an impartial monitoring and complaint system to fairly address online abuse during election. In addition, political parties were urged to take proactive responsibility by nominating focal points to monitor digital abuse and support women leaders facing technology-facilitated attacks. These measures reflect a shared recognition that safeguarding women’s digital safety is essential for protecting their political voice and ensuring their full and equal participation in the electoral process.
Republic of Korea: Embedding reporting in tech solutions
UNDP, through its UNDP Seoul Policy Centre and the Korean National Police Agency, is building institutional capacities to prevent and respond to TFGBV using a rights-based, survivor-centered approach. Complementary work with women’s civil society and human rights institutions is also strengthening protections for Women Environmental Human Rights Defenders, including from online attacks.
Regional responses
Recognizing the urgency of rising digital threats, UNDP convened the 2025 Global Policy Dialogue on TFGBV and Cybersecurity in Bangkok in partnership with the Korean National Police Academy. Its goal was to translate global commitments into coordinated, survivor-centered policies and strengthen integrated responses across justice, law enforcement, governance, and digital ecosystems.
Gerd Trogemann, Manager of the Regional Programme and Global Policy Network, highlighted the transformative power of coordination. “Action across justice systems, digital governance, education, civil society, the private sector, the media, and communities is essential to ensure that digital transformation is safe, inclusive, and empowering for all,” he said.
As the 16 Days of Activism come to a close, there is #NoExcuse for online abuse. Together, we can build safer digital spaces, and ensure that technology empowers, not endangers, women and girls.
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