I wrote this article while stranded in Gibraltar due to a bomb scare at the airport, which apparently had never happened here before.

The power of the social media terrifies and fascinates me in equal measure.  And that power is growing mind bogglingly fast. No wonder social media moguls are basing their continuous investments and new acquisitions on subscription numbers rather than on current profits registered, although the profits will follow and in a deluge!

Real, global, effective power is totally in their hands for real strength in manipulating or owning the potential to manipulate or let as many human minds as possible be manipulated  per second. And the growth is more than exponential, and in many more ways and directions than 'exponential' can describe.

In my childhood opinions were formed and politics was made in village bars and ramshackle wooden benches under Is-Salib tal-Pjazza, in doorways behind the hasira and on the hardstone steps of  little grocery  shops while struggling to dodge the colourful nylon net strings  heavily weighed down by colourful beads with  cane 'gwielaq' busting at the seams, if seams there were.  General opinions and news still travelled like wildfire within the village precincts in a way not even Zuckerberg would have even begun to understand, and if anyone hungered for more details, a trip to Strada Rjali l-Belt or ix-Xatt tas-Sliema would practically satiate and answer any questions by the most inquisitive among us. 

Then there was Rediffusion and TV and telephone and minds changed quicker and in greater numbers.

Still, till a very few years ago mainstream media played a heavy part in setting the agenda for people and their governments alike. But these days, it is the social media which drags the mainstream media into its cyberspace, dictating its upcoming content, mercilessly dissecting its current content and storing its past triumphs and debacles in what and how it reports, in this vast far, far away place a split second away from pressing a button.

This continuous potential for communicating anything to and with anyone while doing so many other interesting things is one of the reasons why I hardly  ever volunteer for conferences abroad.  Though, I admit, nothing replaces personal contact, and it's also true that networking and lobbying is crucial in political circles.

In any case the Theme of this Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians get together was the highly sensitive issue of 'Ending violence against women and girls.' All the other female parliamentarians were otherwise engaged and with Godfrey being the current 'Whip', I couldn't refuse out of sheer respect for the gentleman.

So off  to the Rock I went, and  as chance has it, maybe the gods' way of whetting my insatiable  appetite for adventure, I am now stranded in Gibraltar because  just when we were about to leave, the airport was closed down due to a real bomb scare.  There has never been such a threat in Gibraltar! 

In any case,  the point of this article is (and no bomb scare will scare me from saying this), is that women make up more than half the population of the world, that we are very vulnerable in any situation alone, but very, very strong when we speak together in a united voice. Parliamentary presence worldwide is still heavily dominated by men, and men still make up the majority of perpetrators of violence against women and girls. Perpetrators do come in different guises and do occupy diverse positions in society.

But the social media is accessible by millions of women worldwide and can be used as a powerful tool to raise awareness of the plight of a huge proportion of the world's population. Mobilising world opinion towards zero tolerance towards violence against women and girls can go far towards pushing the shift of public pressure towards having leaders and politicians that will go beyond more lip-service towards addressing this global scourge.

In the meantime, my advice to women sufferers is aptly summarised in the following heartfelt words:

The guarantee of safety in a battering relationship can never be based upon a promise from the perpetrator, no matter how heartfelt. Rather, it must be based upon the self-protective capability of the victim. Until the victim has developed a detailed and realistic contingency plan and has demonstrated her ability to carry it out, she remains in danger of repeated abuse.

Judith Lewis Herman, Trauma and Recovery

But wait. Now they are telling us the airport is cleared and open. We are flying off the Rock after all.

As for the rest: we will see.