Thank you, Mrs. President.
I'm Matti Ispainia Yaqo from Iraq, a representative of CAPNI for
Humanitarian Aids in Iraq.
The sectarian strife that the Iraqis have experienced between their many
ethnic and racial groups since 2005 has given rise to hate speech, which
was also spread via a variety of platforms, including religious, political,
and electronic ones.
Recently, there has been a case of intense hate speech when Iraq lost a
major religious figure. A news report that was published by a news
agency received nearly two thousand comments. Statistics show that 42%
of the people of the said religious figure share grief and solace, 32% are
those who regard him as a disbeliever and felt no pity for him, and 26%
are neutral comments that call for an end to the intensity of hate speech
in the report, which shows the need to increase awareness in response to
hate speech.
Accordingly, I summarize the following:
• Hate speech against a particular minority group on social media
could intensify the conflict and increase the likelihood that the
rights of minorities would be violated.
• Hate speech has the potential to cause instability and terror among
the target population in the nation, which could lead to mass
migration or poor community representation.
Based on the foregoing,
I recommend to the government of my country, Iraq, the following:
1. Putting into effect the Information Crimes Law enacted in 2006
2. Activating the role of the judicial authorities in investigating and
prosecuting anyone who insults or defames someone on social
media, and strengthening the role of the public prosecution in
handling complaints.
3. Activating electronic policies with social media companies to
protect the user.