MANILA, Philippines —The Ateneo de Manila University appealed to the public not to resort to cyberbullying amid discussions on the deaths of its athletes Rene Baterbonia and Divine Adili.
In a statement on Saturday, the university said that “many of those whose names and images have circulated online are young students who are now living through an extraordinarily difficult experience.”
“We respectfully urge everyone to refrain from cyberbullying, online harassment, the spread of unverified information, and personal attacks against those involved. Let us allow the appropriate processes to determine the facts, remembering that the pursuit of accountability must never come at the expense of our shared humanity,” the university said.
“Whatever the outcome of the ongoing investigations, they deserve to be treated with fairness, dignity, and humanity. Public criticism should never descend into harassment, threats, ridicule, or online abuse directed at students or their families,” it added.
The university said both accountability and our shared humanity should go hand in hand.
Both Baterbonia and Adili, who both drowned in a training session in Aurora earlier this month, were laid to rest last Wednesday and Friday.
