Social media and human rights:

Opportunities for reshaping democratic engagement

Mahinda Samarasinghe

Minister of Plantation Industries and Special Envoy of the President on Human Rights

Continued from last Saturday

Post-armed conflict Sri Lanka should develop on efforts to establish cyber relationships between peoples – especially those who have left our country due to violence or other causes. I have often said that these people must be coopted into assisting with our development and national renewal. With the defeat of terrorism the message of peace, brotherhood and reconciliation can be most effectively deployed through social media. This is not to merely promote government policy and support peace-building and mutual understanding by being a part of some media or propaganda campaign. Genuine exchange of views about issues, perspectives, perceived differences and the like can be generated by concerned citizens and will only help in fostering the sense of mutual understanding and respect.

The rise in popularity of social media also coincided with changing perspectives of traditional media.

The famous and oft quoted study by academic researchers at the Cardiff University showed that, in the United Kingdom, most content of stories in leading media outlets are drawn from the wire services and from press releases written by public relations personnel who are said to outnumber working journalists. They report that there is relatively little analytical, investigative or original research in many stories published by leading news outlets.

Freedom of opinion

The decline in standards and increased skepticism with the output of the so-called 'corporate media' also adds more value and credibility to what is termed 'user generated content' on social media. Of course there are notable exceptions with traditional media outlets also turning increasingly to the use of 'new media' to increase interactivity and responsiveness. Corporates, governments, academia, intergovernmental bodies and civil society are also generating their own content. All this leads to a heady mix of information through which it is necessary to carefully sift in order to arrive at a justifiable conclusion. Drawing on Newton's third law, in today’s information age: for every opinion expressed, there is an equally forceful and countervailing idea.

The challenge of discernment and judgement is now placed squarely before the citizen. What then, are the implications for human rights? Freedom of opinion and expression and, especially the freedom of the press, has long been recognized as a bulwark and bastion of human rights protection, even before US President F. D. Roosevelt declared it one of the four freedoms that formed the 'pillars' of human rights. Indeed, this vision, expressed in 1941, became a preambular part of the 1948 Universal Declaration. Assuming that corporate media, serving particular commercial or other interests, fails to present a fair and balanced picture of the reality of a situation, the harmful effects would be considerable.

Social order and human rights

As pointed out earlier, there are outstanding examples in the media that disprove such an assumption. The traditional media has long been a source of highlighting threats to the social order and human rights. They have also produced the nucleus around which mass movements and activists have coalesced – leading to important reforms. Social media now has the opportunity to supplement, not supplant, that force for positive change.

One critical area that I envisage a pivotal role for social media is to assist in the process of realization of economic, social and cultural rights including the right to development. One of the core principles of the right to development is that it must be centred on the person. Thus individual perspectives of development and their positive impact upon the human individual become as important as recording improvements in GDP growth and macro-economic indicators. Governments, other policy makers, the corporate world and society as a whole, needs to be sensitized to the developmental needs of the individual and sometimes the biggest challenge if for the individual voice from the periphery to be heard.

Civil and political rights are different in that they exist and are enjoyed or they are denied. Traditional remedies exist before the ordinary courts and administrative authorities to grant redress in case of violation. The realization of economic, social and cultural rights of the people, including the right to development, is an ongoing and dynamic process. It demands a different collaborative approach in ensuring gradual improvement over time.

labour issues

Citizen participation and engagement becomes a core principle and value in this context. This is where, to my mind, the role of social media – in giving voice to the disenfranchised and the marginalized – can best be utilized. The voice of women, ethnic or other minority groups, the interests of children, environmental and labour issues can all be articulated and canvassed through effective mobilization and campaigning through this media. The activism need not wait for the electoral process or some other significant juncture in time but can be continuous and ongoing. We must create the space for such engagement and incorporate this communication into our national policy dialogue.

Of course until education and opportunity enables persons to access these technological innovations, these discourses will remain limited to economic and social elites – which militates against the whole notion of human rights and social justice.

The expansion of access and the knowledge to effectively use these technologies must go hand in hand with educational and other processes.

The 21st century presents us with an era of hope and expectation of a better future for our children. It is a future in which technology will play a major part in improving lives. Writer and visionary Arthur C. Clarke who, in 1970, predicted an interconnected world based on satellite communications, would view the present advances with a degree of pleasure and, even, wonderment. We in the developing world must not lose the opportunity to maximize our opportunities and prospects.

Our government has implemented a sustained policy of bringing these technologies closer to our people – enabling them to choose how best to forge their collective future. It is up to us to ensure that we make the best use of these technologies for ourselves and our country.

Concluded