Nunavut mom pleads with parents to end cyberbullying

A Nunavut mother is making a plea for other parents to speak to their children about cyberbullying following an incident in which her 10-year-old child was allegedly victimized.

The parent, whom CBC News is not namingin order to protect the identityof her child, posted on Facebookearlier this week about the alleged incident, saying that "a group of girls her age (10 yrs old) created a profile under her name... and have been commenting on (friends) photos telling them to go and kill themselves."

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The parent told CBC that she turned to theRCMPfor help, but was told that the bullies are too young to be charged with a crime.

Cyberbullyinghas been cited as difficult to prosecute in other provinces due to often vague and broad definitions of the act itself.Nunavutcurrently does not have any legislation relating specifically tocyberbullying.

Charges 'not a path we prefer to pursue'

"There's been cases where we have charged people with assault or threats in bullying cases, and they've had to appear in court," says Sgt. David Lawson, a community policing co-ordinator in Iqaluit.

"It's not a path we prefer to pursue, and if there's a better path than dealing with the courts, we're going to try and deal with it that way."

Lawson says that when cases such as this arise, he would prefer to see the community come together to put a stop to the activity, including the parents of the youth involved as well as school officials.

The parent involved in this case says that she has reached out to both, adding that she has advised her own children to stay off the internet for the time being.

Nunavut's Representative forChildren and Youth's office said in astatement it is addressingcyberbullyingthrough awareness programs in schools and through police awareness programs.

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