Threats lef t senator in fear for life
Doherty reveals troll abuse
SENATOR Regina Doherty has recounted the horrific moments when a man threatened to burn down her house with her f our children inside.
The former minister for social protection has spoken out about her terrifying experience with trolls just months after losing her Dáil seat in February’s general election.
Ms Doherty’s comments yesterday followed the release of a new study from NUI Galway detailing the online abuse and threatening messages sent to Irish female politicians.
Speaking about the abuse she was subjected to, Ms Doherty revealed
‘It strengthens your resolve’
she was ‘ afraid’ after several threatening voicemails were left on her office phone.
She said that the threats often came following appearances on current affairs shows on television.
The incidents were brought to gardaí, who were able to trace the calls back to one individual.
The man in question, however, was ‘surprised’ that Ms Doherty was distressed by the comments.
The Fine Gael politician admitted that the threatening abuse made her question her future as a politician.
‘I am a determined, relatively sound in my head, kind of person,’ Ms Doherty told Newstalk Breakfast.
‘ But you do question yourself constantly. Is this actually worth it? But it strengthens your resolve and it kind of reminds you why you get involved in public service in the first place and what it is you want to achieve.’
She expressed concerns that online abuse could deter women from entering politics.
She also called for social media platforms t o be r egulated as she hinted that a lack of rules may lead people to target female politicians online.
The senator added: ‘ We have had an explosion of social media and technology in the last 10 or 15 years.
‘There are new platforms for people to say, either anonymously or totally without any repercussions, what they like about absolutely anybody.
‘There are a lot of people who have dissatisfaction in their own lives and see nothing wrong with taking it out on somebody else and public figures are easy targets,’ said Ms Doherty.
The NUI Galway survey was based on the experiences of 69 current and former TDs, senators and councillors, who were interviewed as part of the research. Nearly all (96%) of the respondents reported being subjected to online abuse.