Northern Ireland: CFWIJ once again registers its concerns over growing threats against Patricia Devlin

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May 10, 2021, Belfast - Award-winning crime reporter Patricia Devlin was again threatened online. Patricia received a very horrific threat against her son via Facebook inbox. The threat mentioned to her son was written as "your baby will suffer very soon from rape very nice". The journalist shared a screenshot on Twitter on May 8 and said, "This is what happens when authorities fail to pursue and hold to account vile creatures using fake accounts to make threats." She further shared that she was off social media for two weeks and received this after coming back. Just last month on April 21, Patricia Devlin was targeted on social media after her coverage of the actions of the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF). This has become a regular occurrence. Devlin, who is a crime reporter has faced similar threats in the past, any time she reported on the loyalist groups operating within Ireland. Over the past couple of years, Devlin was targeted with death and rape threats aimed towards herself and her family, and social media doxxing campaigns. Despite the several attempts to engage law enforcement agencies in the matter, Devlin remains vulnerable to such attacks.

Patricia stated in her Tweet, that account seems to be set up last year and apparently using the name and picture of a young woman. She further elaborated that it just has three friends and most likely it belongs to the same person who has targeted her earlier.

On April 21, Devlin tweeted about the death threats a 17 year old boy has been receiving by the UVF, following which she was immediately targeted by a UVF loyalist. 

Immediately after this, in a tweet that has since been deleted, she was accused by a supporter of the UVF, of lying about the death threat she received earlier this year in 2021. The person behind this account, that only appears to become active in a campaign against Devlin, insinuated that Devlin orchestrated the whole event herself. Other than being a ridiculous and disgusting accusation, it is also plain untrue. The Twitter account posted images taken from a CCTV camera to claim that the people in the photograph were involved in the scheme alongside Devlin. However, in a conversation with The Coalition For Women In Journalism Devlin clarified that could not have been the case. "I was told [by the perpetrators] that there were no CCTV cameras present," she said, explaining the ordeal.

The miscreant was referring to an incident that took place on February 12, 2021, Devlin’s name was depicted on a walled graffiti alongside a gunshot target. This was another in a series of attempts to target Devlin.

Award-winning crime journalist Patricia Devlin is subjected to death and rape threats since 2019. Last year, in October 2020, she received a death threat from the Ulster Defence Association (UDA), a loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland, on her social media. When Devlin reported the threat to Facebook, the platform did not take any action claiming that the post did not breach any safety standards.

In April 2019, Devlin became the target of an online troll campaign by members of the mob. They harassed her with misogynistic slurs and sent out threats of rape. The situation became worse in October 2019, when she received rape threats aimed at her newborn son. She was later doxxed and her residential address as well as names of her family members were made public.

Devlin has repeatedly informed the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) of the threats she had been receiving, however, for a very long time she received no response. In November 2020, Devlin filed a complaint with the Northern Ireland Police Ombudsman for PSNI's failure to investigate the threats. Devlin also requested the Scottish Police for their assistance in the case. Until finally in February this year, following her name being graffitied as a threat, MLA Patsy McGlone tweeted about a meeting he had with Devlin to discuss the risks she faces. The meeting was arranged by MLA Matthew O’Toole through the All-Party Groups forum. McGlone mentioned in the tweet that the issue will be raised at a senior level with the police, and referred to these targeted attacks on Devlin as “threats by fascists to free speech”. It appears that little has been done regarding the matter.

Over the past few years, the rising crime rate in Northern Ireland, has created an environment of fear and violence in the region. Journalist Allison Morris also had her name similarly graffitied on the walls as a threat on February 19, 2021, while journalist Leona O'Neill received one last year. Lyra McKee, a freelance reporter and a member of our coalition, was killed in April 2019 and to worsen matters, a hateful graffiti targeting her showed up on the walls of Derry on February 22, 2021, in an attempt to disrespect her memory. The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) also issued a statement in order to bring attention to the threats that the journalist community was facing.

The Coalition For Women In Journalism is growing increasingly concerned about the threats that Devlin faces and condemns the lethargy being displayed by the police authorities to investigate the matter. Devlin is a brave voice committed to the progress and well-being of her community and the fact that her state offers her no protection against the criminal elements in the region is reprehensible.

You can follow this timeline of events documented by the Coalition For Women In Journalism to know more about the threats faced by Patricia Devlin.

You can also sign this petition to help support Patricia Devlin.