The digital age is in danger of becoming the disinformation age, remarked Permanent Representative, Ambassador Munir Akram during the General Debate under Agenda Item 68 Promotion and Protection of Human Rights in Third Committee General Assembly, United Nations, says a press release received here on Friday from New York. To counter the pandemic of disinformation, he suggested to develop an International Plan of Action to counter disinformation, on-line and off-line, in the public and private domain. We should develop through multi-stakeholder cooperation, uniform rules and regulations and standards for States and social media companies and business enterprises.

He viewed that Pakistan has been a principal target of India’s disinformation campaigns for over 3 decades. Similarly, disinformation is used systematically and to justify Indian’s 70 years old suppression of the Kashmiri freedom struggle by portraying it as “terrorism” and to cover up the war crimes and crimes against humanity being committed in occupied Jammu and Kashmir. The exponential proliferation of disinformation, especially through on-line platforms and social media, has spread social discord; fostered hate speech, racism, discrimination, xenophobia, Islamophobia; and exacerbated competing nationalisms and inter-State tensions and conflicts" he said.

This pandemic of disinformation must be confronted, countered and defeated at the national and international level he added. He resolved that Alas affirmed in GA Resolution 76/227 on Countering Disinformation, we can succeed in doing so only through comprehensive international cooperation. Ambassador Munir Akram informed that, to advance the implementation of the resolution, Pakistan has established the Group of Friends on Countering Disinformation which member states from all regions have joined. These should include principles of State and corporate responsibility, accountability, transparency, data privacy and misuse of data for commercial purposes by technology companies. Such rules and standards can be reflected in the proposed “Digital Compact” he added.

He also put an emphasis on awareness raising, digital literacy and capacity building in all States should be an essential element of a Plan of Action. We should establish institutional arrangements for regular and on-going interactions among Member States, the private media and on-line companies and other stakeholders, he suggested further. Some of the most repugnant manifestation of disinformation must be directly countered. One of these is the state-sponsored campaigns of disinformation promoted by the government of India to serve its strategic and ideological objectives. The IFLA Journal found that between 1st January 2020 to 1st March 2021, out of 9,657 instances of disinformation/misinformation originating from 138 countries, India produced the largest amount of disinformation on social media he said.

Pakistan has been a principal target of India’s disinformation campaigns for over 3 decades. Similarly, disinformation is used systematically and to justify Indian’s 70 years old suppression of the Kashmiri freedom struggle by portraying it as “terrorism” and to cover up the war crimes and crimes against humanity being committed in occupied Jammu and Kashmir. Disinformation is also being utilized by the Hindutva-inspired Indian government to mobilize discrimination against and oppression of India’s 200 million Muslim minority. According to International Fact Checker Network, “sectarian communalism” was the biggest trend this year in India especially disinformation against Muslims.

This included calls for genocide against Muslims by the adherents of Hindutva. Much of India’s disinformation has been exposed by international and even by fact-checking portals in India. He urged the international community should establish mechanisms through which India’s disinformation war against Pakistan, the people of Indian Occupied Kashmir and India’s Muslim and other minorities can be exposed and its sponsors held to account. He thanked the Secretary General, OHCHR and Special Procedures for presenting reports on various aspects of human rights under this agenda item.He also expressed gratitude to the Secretary General for presenting acomprehensive report on countering disinformation with concrete recommendations for member states and social media companies pursuant to Pakistan sponsored resolution 76/227 on Countering Disinformation for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms which was the first formal effort by the UN Member States to develop anagreed international response to the scourge of disinformation.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-INP