Senator Lorraine Higgins to report ‘vile’ email and death threat to gardaí
Ms Higgins told the Irish Examiner last night she was “shocked and perturbed” by the latest vitriol, the third online death threat made against her this year.
“Last May I was told I would be hatcheted in the face and in January I was told I would have my head ripped off ‘and shoved up my hole’. But I hadn’t received anything in the past few months and thought the threats had gone away. I opened the latest email yesterday and it included a video of a sniper. I intend going to the gardaí this morning and I will also be raising the issue in the Seanad,” the Galway senator said.
Ms Higgins, who is not Jewish, said the ongoing abuse had also affected her family, leading to a garda security sweep of her parents’ home last May, where she was residing at the time.
She said gardaí have advised her she will be targeted in the run-up to the General Election.
Ms Higgins’ party colleague, Labour senator John Gilroy, said the video sent to Ms Higgins contained a “very definite message” and it was “the most vile email” he had seen. The Cork senator said it was “the work of someone deranged”.
“That is why I think it is so serious, if someone is capable of writing this kind of abuse, they are capable of following through,” Mr Gilroy said. He believed Ms Higgins was being targeted because she was a woman.
Ms Higgins, who has proposed a new bill to have cyberbullies jailed, said service providers needed to do more. She said Facebook had not responded to her questions about the number of online threats they referred to gardaí and Twitter’s response was to forward her a copy of their policy. The garda response to Ms Higgins’ previous complaints led to a file being sent to the DPP. Ms Higgins said it was “outrageous”online abuse, even death threats, had become “a feature of modern day politics”.
The latest email to Ms Higgins warns “you have much bigger problems on the way than Sinn Féin. so you might as well fuck off now while your still breathing. nothing better than to fill a rat’s mouth with lead”.
Ms Higgins proposed legislation, the Harmful and Malicious Electronic Communications Bill, would make it an offence to share any message that incites someone to self-harm or take their own life. If found guilty, a person would face up 12 months in jail, or a fine of up to €5,000.
Ms Higgins said when the bill was being brought through the Seanad, four female senators spoke of being abused online.
“I definitely think it’s a feature among female politicians.
“I never heard any of my male colleagues say they were threatened in that manner,” she said.
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