Cathryn has attended several Asean-level conferences and forums as a youth representative to talk about issues facing children online, and has given her input on creating a safer digital world for kids.
Cyber-bullying is among her main concerns. She related a personal experience involving a friend.
Her friend was constantly bullied by her peers due to her troubled past.
“She was mocked and teased by many students in school.
“That incident had caused her emotional distress and it made it so hard for her to walk around in school without attracting stares.”
Fortunately, her friend recovered from the ordeal after Cathryn spent time counselling her.
“She learned to take it as an experience and she is now more confident and strong when it comes to dealing with issues like this.”
Cathryn began her journey as a child advocate at the age of 11 when her mother enrolled her into the child advocacy facilitator training as part of the “Children4Change: Child Protection Forum” organised by Unicef Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur, in 2012.
“In that workshop, I learnt that child rights exist. So, that was my calling and I realised that this is what I have been looking for, child rights advocacy.”
The student of SMK Tengku Ampuan Rahimah in Klang will turn 16 next month.
“I feel it’s important not only for children to know about the cyberworld, but also for parents to be aware of the era we are living in right now.”
Despite having a hectic schedule as a secondary school student, Cathryn still manages to find time for activism.
“My mother is my mentor. I don’t go for tuition or extra classes, only school.
“When there is passion, there’s no need to juggle and to see it as a struggle. It’s something I’m happy to do because I’m doing this for the betterment of the world.”
Cathryn’s ambition is to pursue a degree in law and to continue her work in advocating children’s rights.
Aside from Bahasa Malaysia and English, Cathryn also speaks Mandarin and Tamil. She dreams of working with Unicef or even directly with the United Nations in future.