A/HRC/40/35 right to public participation. She debunked the fourth myth: that there were no solutions for addressing online violence. In that regard, she pleaded for a more proactive and transparent role by Internet intermediaries in order to change the nature, scale and effects of such violence on women, particularly those who were politically active. 12. Lastly, Ms. Akiwowo referred to the fifth myth: that the rights and responsibilities of citizenship could not be extended to digital spaces. She stated that digital citizenship education needed to be universally taught from an early age. She mentioned a number of programmes on Internet literacy aimed at providing young people with an understanding of the forms of online abuse, its impact and consequences. Ms. Akiwowo concluded that the phenomenon of driving women out of online public space was nothing new, but was merely an extension of a reality lived by millions of women and girls around the world. 13. Ms. Dad noted that violence against women human rights defenders was not a new global concept; only the forms of oppression had changed. For example, in Pakistan, women human rights defenders had increasingly been attacked by persons using false user profiles sending spyware and exposing them to surveillance and fraud and jeopardizing their physical safety. Ms. Dad described the experience of being the victim of many such attacks, noting the clear gender dimension of the abuse. She stressed that there was an important difference in the abuse directed at men and at women in that attacks against men targeted their work, whereas attacks against women were personal. 14. Ms. Dad discussed the strategies civil society had employed to prevent and combat online violence against women in Pakistan. Efforts aimed at building the capacity of women human rights defenders in countering cyber-attacks and harassment. Civil society had also established reporting mechanisms to hold accountable individuals or groups, such as social media companies, attacking defenders and activists or to shame them in case of a lack of response. Ms. Dad described how civil society was able to prevent malware and enhance accountability for Internet and social media platforms, notably through cyberharassment helplines and digital security developed by organizations such as Access Now, Citizen Lab and Digital Rights Foundation. 15. Ms. Dad stressed the importance of adopting gender-sensitive laws and policies to ensure protection for the victims of such attacks. In that connection, she mentioned a cybercrime law in Pakistan which, although highly criticized, helped protect and support human rights defenders targeted by online harassment and abuse. 16. Mr. Mitchell stressed that directly affected and marginalized people had an important role to play in their protection online. Women activists needed adequate resources, information and support to fight prejudice and gendered forms of online abuse. In that connection, his organization had launched an initiative called the Gender and Tech Institute to defend the safety and well-being of women and other users in a context of inadequate or limited protection and remedies. 17. Turning to the role and responsibilities of private actors, Mr. Mitchell suggested that attacks on women rights defenders did not occur in a vacuum, and that technology and online spaces should afford people the chance not to recreate the misogyny and sexism witnessed in the offline world. He underscored that for technology companies to prevent all forms of online abuse and attacks would require only minimal changes to their platforms. C. Statements by representatives of States and observers 18. During the interactive dialogue, speakers noted that online violence against women was a serious human rights violation and a form of gender-based violence. They affirmed that it was a manifestation of patriarchal societies that used laws, policies and institutions to deny women’s and girls’ rights, autonomy and equal participation, including in digital spaces. 19. Many speakers recognized that online platforms offered unparalleled opportunities to advance gender equality. They acknowledged, however, that the digital space was a mirror of the offline world, where women continued to face misogyny, marginalization, discrimination, harassment and violence. Societies were only at the beginning of the digital 4