Cyberbullying: Annastacia Palaszczuk plans national summit to combat youth suicide

A TEARFUL meeting with a distraught mum has prompted Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk to orchestrate a nationally co-ordinated assault on cyberbullying.

PREMIER Annastacia Palaszczuk is orchestrating a nationally co-ordinated assault on cyberbullying following a tearful meeting with a Queensland mother distraught over relentless attacks on her primary school aged son.

Ms Palaszczuk said cruel and sinister attacks on young, emotionally vulnerable Australians had to be confronted, as the grim toll of youth suicide from cyberbullying rises.

“I sat down with a mother who was in tears this week as she told me what was happening to her boy,’’ she told The Sunday Mail.

“What was occurring in that situation was mainly related to what was happening in the schoolyard, but we have to realise bullying is now following kids home right into their bedrooms.’’

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has acknowledged parents are feeling helpless to stop cyberbullying. Picture: AAP Image/Darren England

Ms Palaszczuk said the story was just one of many she had heard in recent months, but it moved her so much, she decided on a plan of action.

“Parents are feeling helpless, children are feeling defeated, and we need to work together to get on top of this issue,’’ she said.

“Every child should have the opportunity of a good education free of bullying and harassment.’’

The Labor Government plans to establish an urgent summit to end cyberbullying, in an ambitious strategy that begins tomorrow.

The Premier will take a five-point action plan to Cabinet tomorrow morning, beginning a process that will culminate in a detailed proposal to be presented to the next Council of Australian Governments meeting on February 9.

 

Tomorrow’s action plan is expected to include a commitment to additional emergency funding for yourtown to enable their Kids Helpline and Parentline services to cope with increased calls.

If there is a COAG agreement in February, a national summit will be held to discuss better ways of tackling bullying, sexting and revenge porn attacks.

That planned summit would be attended by psychologists, senior ministers, and at least one student representative.

The bleak toll of suicide and self-harm following cyberbullying is rising rapidly — not just across Australia but across the globe.

Ms Palaszczuk said she wanted to take the stories from the kitchen table to the COAG table, and Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has agreed to allow her plan to be included on the agenda.

Queensland’s Kids Helpline, which assists Australian youths via more than 110 phone counsellors, has revealed a disturbing decline in the mental health of young people in the past year.

Professor Peter Jones, a practising paediatrician from Bond University, said there needed to be a focus on mental illness as the underlying cause of the suicide epidemic.

He said suicide should be officially reclassified as “death by depression”.

“When we talk about suicide, what’s really happening is people are dying of depression,” Prof Jones said.

“It’s a bit like calling the coward’s punch for what it is, rather than saying ‘king hit’.”

The Queensland Opposition has thrown its support behind the Premier’s push for a national assault on Cyberbullying.

Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington she said the issues needed to be on the agenda, particularly in light of the suicides of young people.

“As a mother of three daughters I know only too well the difficult and sometimes painful path our kids must travel these days,” Ms Frecklington said.

“It breaks my heart every time I hear that bullying has played a part in the loss of another one of our precious young people — but it’s well and truly time to channel our hurt into action.

“As I said only a week ago, this issue is above politics and I feel strongly that we as politicians, parents, carers and everyday Queenslanders must work together to protect our kids from this insidious threat.

“The LNP stands ready to support measures that tackle all forms of bullying in our state and across the nation.”

If you or someone you know needs help, call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or the Suicide Callback Service on 1300 659 467