Online Petitions- Functional Or Futile?

    An online petition is a form of a formal written request, typically one signed by many people over the internet, usually through a questionnaire on a website, appealing to authority in respect of a particular cause. Visitors to the online petition sign the petition by adding their details such as name and email address. Commonly, on obtaining a certain number of signatories, the resulting petition may be delivered to the concerned authority, usually via e-mail. The online petition may also be programmed to deliver an email to the target of the petition each time the petition is signed.

    On one side an online petition helps in the formation of public opinion, conveys to the government the needs and expectations of the people and also enlightens the common man by bringing into focus contemporary contentious issues. It plays a pivotal role in helping people to express their concerns and support a cause they believe in. 

    With the development in communication technology in the 21^st Century, it is the modernistic way to endeavor in making a difference without the need to mobilize people to protest on the streets and make them face the extremities of weather. It instead helps citizens dissent in a comfortable environment.

    On the other hand online petitions receive heavy criticism as they are not recognized legally and do very little to bring about reforms since the government is not bound to uphold these petitions nor does it give much attention to it. Creating and signing online petitions has emerged as a trend these days. There is a misconception that starting an online petition would resolve their issue. Any legitimate organization that receives the result of an internet petition will, in all likelihood, ignore it. As it is quite easy to fabricate or misrepresent data collected by online petitions. Even for legitimate internet petitions, “voter fraud” is both rampant, and difficult to control. Since these petitions can be created with the push of a button without much effort, at times these petitions might be fraudulent or frivolous. Thereby there is a possibility of evoking negative or derisive perceptions.

    Thus, we can conclude that though online petitions have been quite successful in spreading awareness and garnering attention towards certain concerns or issues, their lack of legitimacy and legal recognition proves to be a major deterrent for a realistic assessment of the situation. Thus online support of netizens may not necessarily translate into offline support and an action for citizens.