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canada#OpThunderbird: Anonymous engagement to combat violence againstIndigenous women in CanadaAssociation for Progressive Communications (APC)Shawna Finneganwww.apc.orgIntroductionViolence against Indigenous women and girls inCanada has reached a point of crisis. Faced withpersistent insecurity, Indigenous women in Canadaare three times more likely to experience spousal violenceand seven times more likely to be murderedthan non-Indigenous women. 1 Law enforcementaround the country has consistently failed to addressthis issue, with reports of police misconduct,harassment and sexual assault. 2In December 2012, the case of a racially motivatedabduction and rape of an Indigenous womanin Thunder Bay, Ontario, 3 and subsequent failureby local police to adequately respond, promptedthe development of Operation Thunderbird. 4 Startedby a group of local Indigenous women and alliesusing the Anonymous network, 5 OperationThunderbird is a community-based initiative toraise public awareness and pressure local authoritiesto take effective action. This initiative is partof a larger Indigenous-led movement in Canadacalled Idle No More, and reflects growing engagementby the Anonymous network in cases of violenceagainst women and girls.BackgroundErosion of Indigenous rights in CanadaThe insecurity faced by Indigenous women and girlsin Canada is a national human rights tragedy. Despitereceiving strong recommendations at the United NationsHuman Rights Council, 6 including the launching1 www.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?DocId=5056509&File=182 www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2013/02/12/bc-human-rights-watch-abuse-report.html3 www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-bay/story/2012/12/31/tbpolice-investigate-sexual-assault.html4 www.wawataynews.ca/archive/all/2013/4/10/operationthunderbird-rallies-Indigenous-women-thunder-bay_243545 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anonymous_%28group%296 www.upr-info.org/IMG/pdf/a_hrc_wg.6_16_l.9_canada.pdfof a national commission of enquiry, 7 the governmentof Canada has continued to uphold the status quo. 8Despite systemic violence against Indigenouswomen in the country, individual cases are oftengiven low priority by local authorities and media.In 2005, a Canadian media analysis 9 suggested significantdisparities in how local police and mediarespond to reports of missing Indigenous womenwhen compared to non-Indigenous women. Reportsfrom Amnesty International 10 indicate widespreadfailure by local authorities to protect Indigenouswomen and girls from violence, while recent researchconducted by Human Rights Watch 11 in thenorth of British Columbia documents cases of physicaland sexual assault by officers of the Royal CanadianMounted Police (RCMP).Violence against Indigenous women is part ofthe growing inequality and marginalisation of Indigenouspeople in Canada, including endemic childpoverty, 12 structural discrimination and the erosionof treaty and land rights. 13 Despite many issuefocusedcampaigns, public awareness has beenhistorically low. In November 2012, in response toproposed federal legislation that would lower thethreshold of community consent in the designationand surrender of Aboriginal Reserve lands, 14four women developed a grassroots campaign 15 toraise awareness of the impact of Bill C-45 on bothIndigenous and non-Indigenous people in Canada.This campaign developed into Idle No More, 16 a7 www.amnesty.ca/blog/un-committee-canada-needscomprehensive-action-to-uphold-Indigenous-rights8 www.vancouversun.com/life/report+finds+Canada+doing+enough+stop+violence+against+aboriginal+women/8315408/story.htmlreport+finds+Canada+doing+enough+stop+violence+against+aboriginal+women/8315408/story.html9 Madison, L. M. (2006) Immediacy, Where Is It For AboriginalWomen Who Are Reported Missing?10 www.amnesty.ca/our-work/issues/Indigenous-peoples/no-morestolen-sisters11 www.hrw.org/news/2013/02/13/canada-abusive-policing-neglectalong-highway-tears12 www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2013/06/18/f-poverty-firstnations-Indigenous-report.html13 www.amnesty.ca/blog/un-committee-canada-needscomprehensive-action-to-uphold-Indigenous-rights14 www.cbc.ca/news/politics/story/2012/10/19/pol-list-2ndomnibus-bill.html15 idlenomore.ca/about-us/item/1-history-of-idle-no-moregrassroots-movement16 www.idlenomore.ca88 / Global Information Society Watch
protest movement that has gained significant supportacross Canada and internationally. Social mediahave been an essential part of the movement,to both raise awareness and provide a space for Indigenouspeople – particularly youth – to speak outand have their voices heard. 17Anonymous “hacktivism”Often referred to as “hacktivists”, 18 Anonymous is aloose network of hackers, technologists, activists,human rights advocates, geeks and pranksters, usingthe name as a banner for disparate collectiveaction to protect and promote the free flow of information.19Anonymous gained public attention in 2010 as aresult of Operation Payback, 20 a series of distributeddenial of service (DDoS) attacks against websites offinancial institutions refusing to transfer funds fromdonors to WikiLeaks following the US diplomaticcable leaks. 21 Months later, in 2011, members ofthe Anonymous network participated in attacks ongovernment websites in Egypt, Tunisia and Libya insupport of the Arab uprisings. 22The Canadian branch of the Anonymous network,CanAnon, 23 has taken a slightly different approachto anonymous activism, raising awarenessand rallying support against policies that limit freedomof expression online, including the proposedonline surveillance bill, C-30. 24 In 2012, members ofAnonymous released details through social mediaabout an alleged suspect in the blackmail and sexualassault of a 15-year-old girl who committed suicideafter private photos were shared without herconsent. 25 The allegations were ultimately found tobe false, leading some to raise concerns over thenegative impacts of online “vigilantism”. 26Operation ThunderbirdOn 27 December 2012, an Indigenous woman wasabducted and raped by two white men in ThunderBay, Ontario, in alleged response to ongoing pro-17 www.thestar.com/news/canada/2013/01/11/social_media_helps_drive_idle_no_more_movement.html18 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hacktivism19 canopycanopycanopy.com/15/our_weirdness_is_free20 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Payback21 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_diplomatic_cables_leak22 www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2011/05/201151917634659824.html23 www.cananon.info24 www.brockpress.com/focus/a-new-breed-of-activism-unmaskingcanada-s-anonymous-culture25 www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/16/amanda-todd-bullyanonymous-suicide_n_1969792.html26 www.theglobeandmail.com/news/british-columbia/hacktivistgroup-names-second-person-in-amanda-todd-case/article4619867tests connected to the Idle No More movement. 27During the assault the woman was told by her attackersthat she deserved to lose her Treaty rights,referencing recent protests. Reports indicate thatlocal police devoted few resources to investigatingthe racially motivated crime, and the perpetratorswere never found.After years of similar cases and police response,a group of like-minded Indigenous and alliedwomen and men identified the need for directaction. Using the Anonymous network, OperationThunderbird was developed to raise awarenessand demand that police allocate sufficient resourcesin order to conduct full investigations. 28 In January2013, the Anonymous network released a video29 from Operation Thunderbird, criticising policeresponse to the assault and releasing descriptionsof two suspects. Referencing Anonymous action inother cases, 30 the video contained a message topolice stating that if no public progress was made,a second phase of Operation Thunderbird wouldbe undertaken.In February 2013, Operation Thunderbird begana second phase through the development of an onlinecrowdsourced map to demonstrate the extentof violence against Indigenous women in Canadaand the United States. 31 Using Anonymous onlinenetworks, Operation Thunderbird receives andshares information on missing Indigenous women,and communicates directly with police and mediato address the disparity in resources deployed toprotect and bring justice to victims. In an interview,the principal researcher for Operation Thunderbirddescribed the importance of the internet and socialmedia in addressing violence against Indigenouswomen:The internet community is the global digitalcommunity now connected, discussing andsharing resources like never before. We believethis is useful in terms of knowing what has andhas not been done to combat disparity and systemicracism. 3227 www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-bay/story/2012/12/31/tbpolice-investigate-sexual-assault.html28 Interview with @org9, Operation Thunderbird, 2 June 2013.29 www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-bay/story/2013/01/24/tbyanonymous-hacker-thunder-bay-police-investigation.html30 jezebel.com/5973165/anonymous-releases-more-intel-on-thealleged-steubenville-rape-crew31 www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-bay/story/2013/02/06/tbythunderbay-anonymous-map-tracks-missing-murdered-aboriginalwomen.html32 Interview with @org9, Operation Thunderbird, 2 June 2013.89 / Global Information Society Watch
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Costa Rica . . . . . . . . . . . .
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IntroductionJoanne SandlerGender at
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excluded. 9 And while recent data n
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ox 1In February 2009, intimate pict
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egime, increasing surveillance of t
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Accessing infrastructureMariama Dee
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figure 2.Share of individuals with
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figure 4.Share of where internet wa
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figure 7.Main reasons why individua
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A digital postcard urging people to
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and set the scene for a new point o
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activity, exhorting citizens to exe
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to citizens. 30 The situated experi
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Sexuality and the internetBruno Zil
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ally exclusive. Commercial sex is a
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Sometimes, strangers they meet onli
Page 38 and 39: Violence against women onlineJan Mo
Page 40 and 41: elated forms of VAW have become par
Page 42 and 43: Men often feel that they own their
Page 45 and 46: ConclusionAs Daroczi, Shevchenko, R
Page 47 and 48: Online disobedienceNadine MoawadAss
Page 49 and 50: mapping platform for sexual harassm
Page 51 and 52: 1800 1850 1900Maria Gaetana Agnesi(
Page 53 and 54: TodaySusan KareCreated the icons an
Page 55 and 56: Whose internet is it anyway?Shaping
Page 57 and 58: academic groundwork is needed, both
Page 59 and 60: empowered and disempowered by them.
Page 61 and 62: Whose internet is it anyway?Shaping
Page 63 and 64: Country reports
Page 65 and 66: P is for PIN: “The website works
Page 67 and 68: Crime of Trafficking, 9 which recei
Page 69 and 70: Role of ICTs in the trafficking of
Page 71 and 72: (1) If any person deliberately publ
Page 73 and 74: BOLIVIAPreventing digital violence
Page 75 and 76: Due to the popularity and widesprea
Page 77 and 78: a position of privilege.” 7 It be
Page 79 and 80: the councils that the spaces alone
Page 81 and 82: gradually become the primary field
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Page 85 and 86: • Of the five MPCTs selected, two
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Page 93 and 94: CHINAMicroblogs: An alternative, if
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Page 97 and 98: colombiaWomen’s rights, gender an
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Page 101 and 102: CONGO, democratic republic ofOnline
Page 103 and 104: CONGO, REPUBLIC OFWomen’s rights
Page 105 and 106: The different uses of ICTs for wome
Page 107 and 108: cook islandsBalancing leadership: A
Page 109 and 110: and the Netherlands (38.7%). Of the
Page 111 and 112: costa ricaThe ICT sector requires t
Page 113 and 114: côte d’ivoireYasmina Ouégnin: A
Page 115 and 116: family expenses according to their
Page 117 and 118: was any kind of consultation before
Page 119 and 120: violence and violence against women
Page 121 and 122: Write Me In is a series of digital
Page 123 and 124: Online protests over “virginity t
Page 125 and 126: ethiopiaEmpowering women through IC
Page 127 and 128: the exchange take as much as 80% of
Page 129 and 130: indiaThe internet as a pathway for
Page 131 and 132: Using ICTs in support of women’s
Page 133 and 134: • Develop gender-sensitive techni
Page 135 and 136: The skill of using modern technolog
Page 137 and 138: However, non-official surveys indic
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iraqICTs and the fight against fema
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multimedia presentations in their v
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Both these groups emerged from the
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Action stepsPaestum 2013Just before
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in 2009. The Dunn et al. study foun
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end of the ICT spectrum, reflecting
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japanDealing with the backlash: Pro
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Akiko and teacher Nomaki Masako (wh
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Access to ICTs helps in the fulfilm
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ut the case was ultimately dismisse
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kenyaWomen and cyber crime in Kenya
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huge online following. Known as an
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Action steps• Lobby to have onlin
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For example, although the abovement
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In addition to the cases mentioned
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Two years later, when facing a simi
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NEPALPerspectives of Nepali women i
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Table 2.Women in technical position
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NetherlandsInternet, information an
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procure a safe medical abortion. Th
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NEW ZEALANDProposed new laws and th
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world. The gender inequalities play
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NIGERIAThe use of ICTs to express p
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the issue in the public eye until p
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PAKISTANShaping ICTs in Pakistan us
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with Pakistan’s internet ranking
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PERUWomen against violence: Using t
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een delays in the judicial response
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infrastructure, clear processes and
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employment. While science courses a
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One of the protesting organisations
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county libraries have been trained
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trained to be accustomed to gatheri
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ConclusionThe government of Rwanda
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a threat to the South African publi
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spainShaping the internet: Women’
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and up to 23% to 25% in industrial
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Economic activityAt the end of the
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Action stepsSwitzerland has ratifie
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• Conducting social campaigns and
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gender equality in the new constitu
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inheritance rights. However, in man
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thailandThai cyber sexuality: Liber
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Table 1.Selected examples of online
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ugandaUsing ICTs to create awarenes
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united statesThe flame war on women
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Council that addresses online haras
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Because of this the DWU became cons
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venezuelaICT and gender violence in
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company PDVSA 41 (2), the National
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This image from Pakistan captures t
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