Numerous cases of online bullying have been making the social media rounds in recent years. Hypocritical moral condemnation, cyberthreats, and extreme rhetoric increasingly pollute the digital stratosphere. Meanwhile, some platforms, ogling network traffic, tend to turn a blind virtual eye to sprouting bouts of defamation, verbal abuse and so the list continues. It's high time for a cyberspace deep clean.

Going by the latest data that China now has roughly 1.03 billion people roaming the Web and spending a weekly average of 28.5 hours online, the question becomes: What measures can help give the cyber environment a good scrub and, more importantly, rein in online violence?

Cheng Guangjiang (www.gmw.cn): Good laws are the precondition for good governance. To curb cyberbullying and cleanse the digital realm, one key step is to strengthen legislation and law enforcement. Many deputies and members at this year's meetings of two of China's major political bodies—the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference National Committee—suggested quickening the pace of intensifying those laws and regulations that accurately and forcefully manage cyberharassment and cyberviolence. Prevention is better than cure.

At this point, crimes like verbal abuse and defamation will incur a maximum of three years in prison. However, it can be costly and difficult for victims to collect evidence and safeguard their rights.

In spite of several previous attempts to clean up the online environment, cybertrolling remains hard to weed out. We need more public awareness, but strict law enforcement appears to be more important. However, China still lacks special laws targeting cyberharassment, and only has a few patchy and unsystematic regulations in place—too weak to cope with the ever-complicated violence online. Targeted legislation is the order of the day.

Zhang Lianqi (news.jcrb.com): While providing the public with more room to express and share their ideas, the Internet for some serves as a platform to hurt others. Online anonymity and virtuality make it possible for some netizens to forego all ethical codes, as well as the relevant laws and regulations.

Cyberspace is not lawless territory. To create a healthy cyberspace and curb online violence, real-name registration can prove effective. A detailed complaints mechanism, too, can have its benefits. Law violators and platforms that refuse to take responsibility should also be subject to punishment.

Zhou Shihong (chinanews.com.cn): At present, cases of cyberbullying are assessed and punished at three levels: first, criminal punishment, targeting cases that seriously endanger national interests and the social order; in such instances, the police will file a report. Second, we have an administrative penalty; perpetrators are fined. Third, perpetrators are required to apologize to or compensate victims via civil litigation.

The main problems right now are that a) punishment lacks severity, and b) the number of cybertrolling cases disciplined is very low. There are a few technical difficulties at play here. In cyberspace, perpetrators conduct their harassment anonymously, albeit alone or in a pack, and, most importantly, it's all set in virtual reality. Relevant authorities thus find it hard to identify who should be reprimanded and victims have no idea who they should file a complaint against. It's necessary to trace major instigators and ringleaders by upgrading tracking technologies and then imposing severe punishment. Those who follow the herd should be educated on and guided in the right direction.

Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon

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