Zhaklin Lekatari, a 43-year-old journalist and feminist activist from Albania, began experiencing the limitations placed on girls at an early age. These experiences shaped her later activism on women’s rights, economic autonomy, sexual education, and online violence. Her advocacy has come at a personal cost, including harsh scrutiny, threats, and violent comments, but she has transformed this adversity into action, documenting online abuse and turning hundreds of threatening messages into a 2023 art exhibition supported by UN Women and the Embassy of France. Lekatari emphasizes that naming and publicly addressing violence are crucial steps in resisting it.
Online abuse is a growing global crisis, and Albania is no exception. UN Women research shows that 41 per cent of Albanian women and girls active online have experienced digital violence, with nearly one in four reporting psychological harm. Lekatari stresses that online abuse is real violence, leaving lasting emotional and psychological scars. Preliminary findings from the 2024 Femicide Report highlight fatal consequences, including suicides linked to online harassment, underscoring gaps in protection systems.
Data from iSIGURT.al, Albania’s National Centre for Internet Safety, indicates that 90 per cent of perpetrators are men aged 15–44, with more than half of survivors under 18. Common abuses include stalking, extortion, bullying, and hate speech. Despite rising incidents, many survivors hesitate to report due to fear of judgment or social pressure. iSIGURT.al is responding by launching the first hotline for reporting online violence against women and girls in Albania and the Western Balkans, aiming to provide safer reporting mechanisms and support.
Digital abuse reflects broader societal discrimination, with deepfakes, hate speech, and gendered disinformation reinforcing the message that women’s voices are unwelcome in public life. Albania’s legal and institutional systems have struggled to address these challenges, with limited specialized police units, slow proceedings, and a lack of specific legislation.
A major legal reform is underway. Albania is preparing a law on the “Prevention and Protection from Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence,” which is expected to criminalize digital violence, define threats, harassment, stalking, and non-consensual image sharing, and provide faster reporting and protection procedures. The law will also enhance access to legal aid, psychosocial support, and the removal of abusive digital content, while holding platforms accountable for harmful material.
For Lekatari, legal reforms are only part of the solution. She calls for social and media responsibility, urging platforms to take legal accountability for content and media to avoid sensationalizing digital violence. Despite ongoing risks, she continues to speak out, advocating that activism, support, and solidarity are essential acts of resistance against online abuse.
