DW Akademie Study Safer platforms, stronger participation
Abstract
This study analyses Gender-Based Violence Online
(GBVO) in Syria and how it shapes women’s ability
to speak, work, and participate in public life online.
Commissioned by DW Akademie, it generates evidence
to inform safer digital spaces and more gender-sensitive
media practices, serving as a key resource for stakeholders
and the wider international audience.
An exploratory mixed-methods design was used. The
study combined a desk review with 19 Key Informant
Interviews (media, civil society, legal, and policy actors),
12 In-Depth Interviews (including survivors and women
journalists/activists), and three Focus Group Discussions (female media professionals, youth activists, civil
society actors). It also included an exploratory scan of
online spaces, especially Facebook and Telegram, to map
patterns of abuse.
Findings show GBVO in Syria is normalized and systemic,
not isolated incidents. It functions as social control that
escalates when women become visible, and it often
blends sexualized blackmail, harassment and threats,
defamation campaigns, doxxing, and psychological
intimidation. Platform dynamics can enable coordination in encrypted spaces and amplify harm in public
ones, while victim-blaming narratives push many women
toward self-censorship. The report details the human
costs: fear, distress, reputational harm, and withdrawal
from online and public spaces. It closes with practical,
clear recommendations for media, civil society, and
policymakers to strengthen prevention, survivor centered
support, and accountability.
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