Events
INVESTING IN THE POWER OF YOUTH
for Countering and Addressing Hate Speech
Date: TUESDAY, 18 JUNE 2024
Time: 11:00 - 1:00pm EDT (New York time)
Place: ECOSOC Chamber ? United Nations, New York
The Permanent Mission of the Kingdom of Morocco to the United Nations and the United Nations Office of the Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide marks the 3rd High-Level event for Countering Hate Speech highlighting the importance of investing in the power and voice of youth to counter hate speech
Hate speech in media and social media – Lessons from the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda
Date: 4 June 2024
Time: 8:30 - 9:30 a.m. EDT
Place: Virtual event
The Outreach Programme on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda and the United Nations invites you to a virtual discussion about the role of media-led hate speech in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. Panelists and the audience will also discuss what the international community is doing to curb misinformation and disinformation. The event is taking place during Kwibuka, which is the 100 days of remembrance of the victims of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, and ahead of the International Day for Countering Hate Speech.
Recording of the full event. (01:07:43)
PANELLISTS:
- Gregory Gordon, Professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) Law Faculty. Former Deputy Team Leader for the International Criminal Tribunal of Rwanda’s “media” case, the first international post-Nuremberg prosecutions of radio and print media executives for incitement to genocide.
- Margaret Jjuuko, Professor of Journalism, Communication and Media Studies at the University of Rwanda; President of the East African Communication Association
- Ambassador Ernest Rwamucyo, Permanent Representative of Rwanda to the United Nations
- Melissa Fleming, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications
- This event will be moderated by Ben Dotsei Malor, a Chief Editor at UN News with decades of experience in media and public information.
HIGHLIGHTS:
The Outreach Programme on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda and the United Nations held a virtual panel discussion on 4 June to explore valuable lessons learned from the role of media-led hate speech played in inciting the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda.
In opening remarks, Ambassador Ernest Rwamucyo, the Permanent Representative of , said that in the 30 years since the genocide, Rwanda has sought to transform itself, by investing in youth and women in particular, and in building a “forward looking society focused on unity and peaceful co-existence.” But despite these efforts, hate speech remains a dangerous threat.
“We have to look at social media as the new purveyor of hate speech and persecution campaigns,” he told the virtual panel.
Pointing to examples in Rwanda from 1994 and earlier, Ambassador Rwamucyo noted that hate messages were “crafted very, very carefully” in print and radio media to target particular groups or communities.
In its famous “media case” ruling, the International Criminal Tribunal of Rwanda (ICTR) referred to the messages of ethnic targeting, including incitement to kill, by the government-controlled Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines (RTLM) and the magazine Kangura before and after 6 April 1994 as “the bullets in the gun” that started the violence and killings of the Tutsi minority.
Gregory Gordon (), professor and scholar of international law, was part of the ICTR prosecution team on the Media case. He told the panel how the Tribunal built its case of incitement to commit genocide against those “most responsible” for the hate propaganda – print and radio media executives.
The trial team’s initial guidance in investigating/prosecuting the case was jurisprudence from the post-World War II Nuremberg Trials related to convictions for crimes against humanity (persecution) against certain leading Nazi propagandists. And the incitement charges themselves were modeled on language taken from the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
As technology moves forward, the legal system has to keep up, he stated.
The 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi “involved old media and now what we’re dealing with is an era of social media and newer types of media. This involves platforms that are often privately controlled, and the law has to evolve,” Professor Gordon added.
Speaking to how media and journalists in Rwanda are trying to prevent or address issues of hate speech, Professor Margaret Jjuuko (), who teaches Journalism, Communication and Media Studies at the University of Rwanda, advocated for media literacy education, starting as early as kindergarten.
She said young people need to understand the power of words in promoting propaganda and stoking up conflict.
Press freedoms are guaranteed in the Rwandan Constitution, Professor Jjuuko said, but “every freedom has to come with social responsibility and understanding.”
In her opening remarks, UN Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications, Melissa Fleming, told the panel that hate speech and misinformation are now disseminated via social media at larger and more dangerous scale, threatening peace, security, and sustainable development around the world.
In Europe, for example, a recent EU Fundamental Rights Agency survey showed a sharp increase in hate speech aimed at women – particularly in leadership positions, journalists and climate activists – as well as people of African descent, the Roma population and other minority groups.
In the United States, FBI figures show that hate crimes are at a record high since the agency began collecting such records in 1991. There has also been a spike in hate speech and subsequent hate crimes targeting Jewish and Muslim populations since the outbreak of the war between Israel and Hamas.
The trend can also be seen in the Middle East, Asia and parts of Africa, such as Ethiopia, as well as other parts of the world, based on information received from UN offices and other sources.
She cautioned that “bad actors are weaponizing disinformation and hate,” which is “scary, frankly, and it is hurting and dividing communities in many of the places where we work.”
Ms. Fleming said that the United Nations is taking this trend seriously and is therefore strengthening its response, in line with the UN Strategy and Plan of Action on Hate Speech.
The Department of Global Communications has an ongoing #NoToHate campaign, to sensitize global audiences around hate speech. There is also the Pause campaign to foster media literacy and cause people to think carefully before sharing material online – encouraging individual social media users to avoid becoming players in spreading hate.
To address genocide denial through education, the Department manages two outreach programmes; one on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, the other on the Holocaust.
The Department is about to launch the UN Global Principles on Information Integrity, which will address hate speech and mis/disinformation globally.
“The goal is to create healthy information ecosystems around the world because only in healthy information ecosystems can we have societies that are peaceful, that can coexist in unity and in community together,” Ms. Fleming said.
The discussion was moderated by Ben Dotsei Malor (), a Chief Editor at UN News.
It was organized as part of events marking the 100 days of Kwibuka, which is the period between 7 April and 4 July when the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda took place. This panel discussion was also held ahead of the International Day for Countering Hate Speech, marked annually on 18 June.
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For more information, visit the Outreach Programme on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda and the United Nations website.
** Links to external websites are provided for information only. The United Nations is not responsible for the content of external websites.
International Day for Countering Hate Speech –
Date: 20 June 2023
Time: 9:00 am - 20 June 2023 - 12:35 pm
Place: Kathmandu, Nepal, hybrid
Online and offline, hate speech hurts, divides and affects communities worldwide. Is there a way to address its growing prevalence globally? And to what extent should preventive approaches be adapted regionally? Learn more about the and !
High-level event to mark the 2nd International Day for Countering Hate Speech
Date: 19 June 2023
Time: 11:00 - 1:00 pm EDT (New York time)
Place: Trusteeship Council ? United Nations, New York
The United Nations Office on Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect and the Permanent Mission of the Kingdom of Morocco to the United Nations will host a high-level event to mark the 2nd International Day for Countering Hate Speech, showcasing champions of good practices on tackling hate speech from across the world.
Virtual discussion "Race" and Racism: Roots of Atrocity Crimes
Date: 26 October 2022
Time: 12:00 - 1:00 pm EDT (New York time)
Place: Virtual
Join us for a discussion that focuses on the relationship of so-called “race theory” and racism to the committing of atrocity crimes and genocide, and how the belief in “race” shaped the history and the legacy of the transatlantic trade in enslaved Africans, the Holocaust and the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. The discussion is Episode 8 of the "Beyond the long shadow: engaging with difficult histories" live discussion series.
Combating Holocaust and Genocide Denial
Date: 15 July 2022
Time: 9:00 - 10:00 am EDT (New York time)
Place: Virtual
The UN Office of the Special Adviser on Prevention of Genocide (OSAPG) and the Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights invite you to join an event launching the new UN policy paper, “Combating Holocaust and Genocide Denial: Protecting Survivors, Preserving Memory, and Promoting Prevention.”
This new resource provides guidance for national governments, the United Nations system, and other relevant actors, including social media companies, to respond effectively to these phenomena using a victim-centered and human rights-based approach, consistent with the United Nations Strategy and Plan of Action on Hate Speech. It is comprehensive and holistic, concerning recognizing and condemning Holocaust and genocide denial and distortion; combating these phenomena through law, online, and through education; and preventing them through memorialization and other transitional justice measures.
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Informal High-level Meeting to mark the commemoration of the first International Day for Countering Hate Speech
Date: 20 June 2022
Time: 10:00 am EDT (New York time)
Place: General Assembly Hall
![Invitation card [pdf]](/sites/un2.un.org/files/hate-speech-event-june-2024-en.png){kind=link}
This event will contribute to spearheading political support to develop strategies to identify, address and counter hate speech at the national and global levels, taking into account, as appropriate, the United Nations Strategy and Plan of Action on Hate Speech. The meeting will be webcast . See the letter from the President of the General Assembly.
Role of education to address the root causes of hate speech and advance inclusion, non discrimination, and peace
Date: Friday 17 June 2022
Time: 3:00-5:00 pm EDT (New York time)
Place: Trusteeship Chamber
The Kingdom of Morocco and the United Nations Office on Genocide Prevention have the honor to invite you to a High Level Event to mark the celebration of the 1st International Day for Countering Hate Speech, 18 June of each year, that was proclaimed by the General Assembly landmark resolution . It will serve as a momentous manifestation to spearhead political support to develop strategies to identify, address and counter hate speech at the national and global levels. It will also highlight the positive role of education in tackling hate speech, while showcasing good practices from Member States, the United Nations agencies and civil society actors.
Download the programme for details on speakers and RSVP.
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Fighting Hate Speech: Global Perspectives
Date: 16 June 2022
Time: 9:00-10:30 am EDT (New York time)
The United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI), jointly with the Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme and the United Nations Outreach Programme on the Transatlantic Slave Trade and Slavery, and the Outreach Programme on the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, to mark the first International Day for Countering Hate Speech, is organizing a virtual event to recognize the significant role of higher education and academics, in the global efforts to promote human dignity and inclusion in times when dissemination of hatred is alarming and rising. Please visit Academic Impact for the details of this event.
The role of civil society in tackling hate speech
Date: 23 May 2022
Time: 1-2 pm EDT
The UN Office on Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect (OSAPG) would like to invite you to a webinar on “The role of civil society in tackling hate speech”. The webinar will focus on the role of civil society to address and counter hate speech. The session will highlight good practices, challenges and opportunities in this regard. It will also provide examples of partnerships between civil society and other relevant actors to address hate speech and promote positive narratives.
Speakers include:
- Ms. Claire Thomas, Deputy Director at Minority Rights Group
- Dr. Sanjana Hattotuwa, Special Advisor at ICT491麻豆天美 Foundation
- Mr. Javier Pallero, Director of Policy & International Programs at Access Now
The speakers will share their observations on the role and the importance of civil society in tackling hate speech.
Contemporary trends and challenges in hate speech
Date: 16 May 2022
Time: 2:30pm EDT
The UN Office on Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect (OSAPG) would like to invite you to a webinar on “Contemporary trends and challenges in hate speech”. The webinar will focus on ideas and initiatives on how to identify hate speech, mitigate it online and offline, and what role different actors play in developing and applying effective countermeasures. The session provides an opportunity to evaluate recent policy initiatives and explore solutions for issues that are not yet adequately addressed.
Speakers include Fernand de Varennes, Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, Iain Levine, Senior Human Rights Director at Meta, and Barbora Bukowska, Senior Director for Law and Policy at ARTICLE 19. The speakers will share their observations on contemporary trends and challenges in hate speech especially and how they impact contemporary societies.
This is the first of a series of three webinars on hate speech organized by OSAPG in the lead up to, and in preparation of, the first commemoration of the International Day for Countering Hate Speech established in June 2021 by General Assembly resolution on “Promoting interreligious and intercultural dialogue and tolerance in countering hate speech.” The International Day will be celebrated for the first time on Monday, 20 June 2022. The webinars will feature guest speakers who will discuss and offer perspectives on different aspects of the hate speech phenomenon and raise public awareness on the importance of addressing and countering hate speech in line with international human rights standards.