Be-Free and in cooperation with Artzania held an event titled “Say No… to Cyberbullying” in Ramli Mall, on Saturday 19th March. This event of raising awareness about cyberbullying comes in a time where cyberbullying is increasing among children and teenagers who use social media applications. A study conducted by Telecommunication Regulatory Authority about the children’s use of internet in Bahrain revealed that 37.9% of the children were cyberbullied, and that many children and teenagers do not know what cyberbullying is, nor how to deal with it.
During the event, Be-Free conducted two types of mini-workshops for children and teenagers, the first workshop is “Say No… to Cyberbullying” that concentrates on developing the children’s and teenagers’ awareness in dealing with cyberbullying on three levels. The first level is stopping any action of cyberbullying, the second level is to recognize cyberbullying actions and acknowledge that they are wrong, and the third level is to take a role in hindering cyberbullying. Children and teenagers are encouraged to follow the third level, although the first two levels are good too.
The second mini-workshop was the interactive story “Salem and the Smart Crayons” that contains some of the important protection skills. After the workshop, Artzania members helped children and teenagers to create models from clay related to the workshops, which helps them in remembering and connecting with the concepts and skills learned.
At the end of the workshop each child or teenager received a copy of the story, or the “Say No… to cyberbullying” booklet. There was high attendance by families, and the total number of trained children and teenagers was 189.
