“Children have lost their lives over sextortion,”
That’s from Prince George Sexual Assault Centre Executive Director Lynnell Halikowski after the provincial government introduced the Intimate Images Protection Act.
The legislation covers intimate images, near-nude pictures, videos, and live streams as well as digitally altered images and videos known as deep fakes.
Halikowski told Vista Radio the announcement is a step in the right direction.
“It will certainly go a long way in supporting victims of online predators being able to have those images taken down and then some real live consequences for the offenders.”
“It also offers a clarity of language on what sextortion is. It makes it really clear about the legal implications for those who are extorting primarily children and youth but for all victims of online predators,”
However, while the legislation signals progress, the BC Government could do a little bit more.
“This is great, but there does need to be more work. I was really discouraged when we looked at the announcement in the provincial budget last week to see that there were some great things in there but there was no mention of gender-based and sexualized violence.”
“It can’t be one approach to fixing these issues. It’s multi-layered and multi-textured and there needs to be education and the change in charge approval and the way survivors are dealt with and interviewed,” said Halikowski.
Halikowski believes youth in the north may have been impacted more by sextortion than other areas of BC during the pandemic, due to the isolating nature of our region.
“When the schools closed and there were all the provincial health restrictions and health orders in place, more people were at home. There was also increased vulnerability due to the isolation that happened in the pandemic, but also living in the north, in terms of winter road conditions and all of those pieces – I think northern and rural communities used social media at record numbers.”
During the height of the pandemic, the PG Sexual Assault Centre saw a 40% spike in referrals.
Their facility is located at 1460 4th Avenue.
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