Mitigating Ethnic Conflicts Through Digital Governance

Introduction

The proliferation of social media networks has allowed for the quick dissemination of information across boundaries and frontiers. The processes of information- and content-sharing are not only top-down but also bottom-up, a phenomenon that brings a plethora of advantages and disadvantages to the fore. While conduits like Twitter(X), Facebook, and TikTok have enabled and empowered citizens to act as pressure groups, they have opened the floodgates to mendacious propaganda, disinformation, and misinformation. All this, as David Patrikarakos writes in his book entitled “War in 140 Characters,” points to how big an impact individuals and networks are having on modern conflict.[1] Indeed, the ease with which everyone carrying portable devices can share any content they want to, thickens the fog of information. And when attribution becomes a tad more complicated, many, if not all, can get away with a lot. Therefore, it is reasonable to think that individuals, both by their own volitions, or as part of sinister campaigns, can contribute to targeting various religious and ethnic communities. Scholars have variously tried to analyze the effects of increased social media penetration on ethnic and communal conflicts, arguing that, while it does not cause them, it certainly adds fuel to fire.  In his paper entitled “Social Media and Conflict: Understanding Risks and Resilience,” Keith Proctor writes that the malicious and hateful online content has further exacerbated simmering conflicts and violence in Ethiopia, Myanmar, and Iraq.[2] Similarly, in 2020, the Government of Pakistan revealed that social media accounts operating out of India were behind the sudden outbreak of online sectarian hostility in Pakistan.[3] Such was the intensity of that campaign that, after decades, Pakistan witnessed sectarian violence on the streets. This exemplifies one of the biggest dangers associated with social media: fake news. To Rabia Akhtar, accentuated by social media, “fake news has the capacity to spread hatred, division, and propaganda, as well as to influence public opinion.”[4]

From the foregoing, two hallmarks of social media come to light. First, various categories of actors may find it advantageous to weaponize social media, with a view to achieving a range of political goals. Second, the purveyors of fake news and propaganda have more aces up their sleeves to ostracize, stereotype, and otherize specific communities. These two characteristics certainly make social media a potent weapon of war. That being said, the set of upsides of social media makes it extremely difficult to put a lid on its use for subversive purposes. Just like nuclear technology, social media brings with it a seemingly unnavigable dual-use dilemma. This veritable reality engenders many a policy problem, compelling scholars and policymakers to ask this question: How can social media users and usage be made more peace-inducing? The answer lies in making digital governance more vibrant, effective, and comprehensive. Apropos of social media, two specific policy actions need to be highlighted.

Striking a Balance Between Freedoms and Responsibilities

The pervasiveness of social media has impacted governments and institutions across the world, as evidenced by their reliance on it as a source of information and communication. This level of penetration has, among other things, highlighted the need to develop frameworks to guard against social media’s deleterious ramifications. Though a broad, all-encompassing term, digital governance shapes how social media platforms operate. It is through digital governance that the usage of social media can be steered towards attaining  positive outcomes. It is noteworthy that the responsibility to make digital spaces propitious for strengthening shared values lies on both users and owners. Therefore, any governance framework that wishes to attenuate the negative usage of social media must focus on both these groups. For starters, governments around the world should work towards developing a code of conduct for social media users. While every country’s government will have a different set of codes and guidelines, there are key themes that can be seen as global best practices. For example, hate speech, incitement to violence, and religious desecration could be codified as unacceptable social media practices. In order to better understand the sensitivities of specific groups, governments, platform owners, and key segments of the civil society must join hands and identify ways to reach common grounds. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has done some work on improving digital governance, and therefore it can be partnered with, especially with a view to building capacities of stakeholders.[5] If these wide-ranging interventions result in creating some kinds of norms against online hate and war mongering, many of the incendiary sources of hatred on social media will become ineffectual and redundant. Also, adopting this inclusive approach will ensure the promotion of the right to free speech and expression. That being said, all this will not be easy, not least because much of it requires political will and a commitment to not weaponizing social media. Regrettably, individuals and groups see social media as an all-important battlefield.

Moreover, by virtue of being a significant plank of digital governance, education is an area that requires strategic interventions. Therefore, efforts must be made to enhance digital literacy. With young populations around the world spending more time on social media,[6] it is important that, through public-private partnerships, users are introduced to all facets of social media, cyber security, cyberbullying, propaganda, and a bevy of gray-zone tactics. Cognizant users can help counter fake news, disinformation, and propaganda while also becoming ambassadors of peace on social media. Users who understand the generative capacity of Artificial Intelligence (AI), for instance, can decipher malign activities on various social media sites. Besides, enhanced digital literacy will induct verification processes to the social media mix, greatly reducing the rapidity with which provocative, unverified information is spread to widen communal and ethnic fissures. Being attentive to these details could greatly help avert incidents like mob lynching.[7] Posting one unverified news items could, it must be stressed, not only breed violence but also create lasting divisions. Therefore, it is reasonable to argue that responsible behaviors on social media can, at the very least, reduce the prospect of ethnic violence. This is not to say other drivers of ethnic cleavages are any less dangerous. Last but not least, more digitally-savvy, sensitized users will ensure freedom of expression for all, making social media spaces more inclusive.

All these policy responses must be dovetailed with, and supplemented by, national and global legal instruments that must be put in place to outlaw hate speech and other conflict-propellants.

Conclusion

The dual-use nature of social media is a cause of global concern now, especially because everyone has to contend with it. Escapism is both untenable and undesirable, and therefore efforts must be made to make the most of this phenomenon. The aforementioned policy interventions offer the best chance to alter collective behaviors on social media so as to eventually eliminate the online causes of ethnic and communal conflicts. The task is gargantuan, for it can only be accomplished through sheer will and determination on part of actors with disparate interests. However, what should compel everyone to change things around is that clinging to the status quo will not make the world any safer.

[1] Rose Deller, ‘Book Review: War in 140 Characters: How Social Media is Reshaping Conflict in the Twenty-First Century by David Patrikarakos,’ London School of Economics (2023)

[2] Keith Proctor, ‘Social Media and Conflict: Understanding Risks and Resilience: Research Findings from Ethiopia, Myanmar, and Iraq,’ (2021)

[3] Global Village Space, ‘Bombshell data reveals sectarian trends on Pakistani social media originate from India,’ (2020)

[4]  Rabia Akhtar, “Fake News, Dis-information and Disruptive Technologies: A Pakistani Perspective on Hybrid Warfare,” Consortium of South Asian Think Tanks (COSATT) and Political Dialogue Asia Programme, Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS)

[5] United Nations Development Programme, ‘Digital Governance.’

[6] Brad Adgate, ‘Gallup: Teens Spend More Time On Social Media Than On Homework’ Forbes (2023)

[7] Elyse Samuels, ‘How misinformation on WhatsApp led to a mob killing in India,’ The Washington Post (2020)