Muavin – Support Against Online Harassment
A mobile application has been launched that is designed to help women and marginalised groups who are facing online harassment.
The application titled ‘Muavin’ is available on all Android devices seeking to explore community-based solutions to online harassment, including sexual harassment, incitement to violence and hate speech.
The application allows users to create groups of allies based on their Facebook and Twitter networks, who can be alerted in the case of harassment or abuse online.
‘Muavin’ was developed by local NGOs, Media Matters for Democracy and Code for Pakistan.
Developers have claimed that the application aims to address a key problem within the digital community; instances of online abuse and harassment, targeting communities that have faced similar hate and discrimination offline.
The application’s beta version has been made available on the Google Play Store, an online distribution platform for smartphone applications.
The allies created using ‘Muavin’ could add their voices in support. It also includes discussion forums that can be used as community spaces to share and discuss experiences, particularly in the context of online abuse and harassment.
One of the app developers from Code for Pakistan stated that ‘Muavin’ essentially aims to create a community that is well aware of the issue of online harassment and is able to band to challenge online trolls and abusers.
This initiative will hopefully change the current situation of online harassment in Pakistan, as users will be able to document incidents of violence and report it to their online community.
