The International Day for Countering Hate Speech has been observed by the United Nations. The commemoration was meant to encourage individuals to join forces to create increased awareness and courteous society, as well as taking concrete steps to put a stop to such poisonous and harmful trend.
Hate speech perpetuates discrimination and stigma and is frequently directed at women, refugees and migrants, and minorities. If unregulated, it can even hinder peace and development by laying the groundwork for conflicts and tensions, as well as widespread human rights violations.
Additionally, UN Secretary-General António Guterres issued a warning that, ill-conceived and insufficient measures to derogatory language, such as sweeping bans and internet disruptions, infringes on human right by limiting freedom of speech and expression.
Similarly, Volker Türk, the senior UN human rights official, claimed that, the growth of hate speech-related laws that have been utilized against the media and advocates for human rights, are almost as rampant as hate speech itself.
In a conference prior to today’s commemoration, Volker Turk appealed to the general public to put together an effort to combat the rise of hate speech against targeted individual and organizations.
“We know that the spread of hate is used by those who want to sow divisions, to scapegoat and to distract from real issues. Social media is a remarkably fertile ground for hate speech, providing it with both unprecedented reach and speed. And hate breeds bigotry, discrimination and incitement to violence. What must be done? There is no silver bullet, no switch to flip that will rid our world of hate, online or offline. But with targeted and well-resourced measures, we can succeed in limiting its spread, isolating and holding accountable hate-mongerers, and building greater respect.”
Volker Turk, Senior UN Official On Human Rights.
In his message for the Day, he emphasized that, laws that allow states to restrict speeches they deemed offensive, and to threaten or arrest anyone who question government policy or criticize authorities, violate rights and jeopardize critical public debate. “Rather than criminalizing protected speech, we need States and companies to take urgent steps to address incitement to hatred and violence,” Mr. Türk said.
On the other hand, Mr. Guterres also claimed that “we can and must raise awareness about its dangers, and work to prevent and end it in all its forms,” pointing to the fact that, we are far from helpless in the wake of hate speech.
The Secretary-General however, referenced the United Nations Strategy and Plan of Action on Hate Speech, as the Organization’s broad blueprint for combating the root causes and effects of hate speech. Again, he mentioned that, the world organization’s offices and teams worldwide would be addressing hate speech by enacting regional action initiatives, in line with UN’s action plan.
“The United Nations is consulting governments, technology companies and others on a voluntary Code of Conduct for information integrity on digital platforms, aimed at reducing the spread of mis- and disinformation and hate speech, while protecting freedom of expression.”
Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of UN.
Moreover, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mr. Türk, appealed for a variety of activities, such as funding digital literacy programs, promoting education, paying attention to hate speech, and making corporations accountable for their human rights commitments.
“More also needs to be done to address mega-spreaders – those officials and influencers whose voices have profound impact and whose examples inspire thousands of others,” Mr. Türk said. “We must build networks and amplify voices that can cut through the hate.”
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