News in English     | 07.09.2021. 19:15 |

Zvizdić at World Conference in Vienna talks about 'fighting hate speech'

FENA Press release

VIENNA/SARAJEVO, September 7 (FENA) - Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina (PABiH) Denis Zvizdić spoke today at the panel of the 5th World Conference of Speakers of Parliaments in Vienna on "Suppression of disinformation and hate speech online and offline", saying it requires stricter regulations.

In his address, Zvizdić said that we live in the time of the fourth industrial revolution that marked the end of the 20th and the beginning of the 21st century and that we are, at the same time, on the threshold of the fifth industrial revolution which brings certain challenges, such as growing automation, artificial intelligence and the so-called internet stuff.

"That is why the issue of Internet regulation and adjustment of the country's legislation to the changes that are coming is even more important. Today, the internet is one of the issues that, for sure, leads civilization towards further progress. We can use it for the most correct possible purposes, such as education, social connection, spreading the ideas of humanism, etc. But, unfortunately, the internet can unfortunately also be used for negative purposes, such as spreading false news, spreading hate speech, spreading conspiracy theories or any other idea that can have negative consequences for the global community," the chairman said during his address.

He explained why he thinks regulation should be stricter. "The European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms is one of the greatest achievements of the civilized world. Article 10 of this Convention states that ‘everyone has the right to freedom of expression’. However, this right, like any other, is not absolute. The same article of the Convention in paragraph (2) also provides for certain restrictions on freedom of expression. These are clearly stated cases ‘when it is necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security, territorial integrity or public security, prevention of disorder or crime, protection of health and morals, reputation or rights of others’. Here I would like to emphasize ‘the protection of the health, reputation and rights of others’. You cannot use unrestricted freedom of speech to insult other people because of their religion, nation, race, gender, sexual orientation, or the like, and use the network to spread those ideas as positive. There are many internet portals, pages and profiles on social networks that spread neo-Nazi, neo-fascist, racist, xenophobic, Islamophobic and similar ideas or glorify and glorify war criminals. Or, which is in conflict with civilized norms, they deny the genocide in Srebrenica. At the same time, editors and users of these profiles are calling for freedom of speech. But, as we have said, freedom of speech does not mean insulting another person’s rights.

In this sense, regulation should certainly be stricter. The European Convention on Human Rights is a sufficient legal framework for the adoption of better and more efficient legislation at the national level, "Denis Zvizdić emphasized.

In his address, he called on all parliaments operating within the Inter-Parliamentary Union to react in their legal systems in order to suppress as much as possible the possibility of spreading misinformation and hate speech online or offline, and stressed that he clarified that it can be dangerous to the lives, health and safety of other people.

The Chairman of the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Denis Zvizdić, participated today in the 5th World Conference of Speakers of Parliaments, which is being held in Vienna from September 6 to 9, 2021. The conference, organized by the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the Austrian Parliament, is attended by representatives of parliaments from 112 countries.

(FENA) L. N.

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