#political rumors Jharkhand

[townpostin]

JMM's Champai Soren Quashes BJP Defection Rumors

Senior leader and BJP official deny speculation ahead of Jharkhand elections Reports of JMM leader Champai Soren potentially joining BJP have been firmly denied by both parties. JAMSHEDPUR – JMM’s Champai Soren and BJP’s Himanta Biswa Sarma both have refuted claims of Champai Soren mulling switching parties before Jharkhand polls. Recent speculation about Champai Soren’s possible defection to…

[a-film-app]

Bollywood to the Marathi film industry: Explore Different Film Industries in the Directory

Say hello to The Film India, the premier online resource for Indian cinema! We are a cutting-edge app made to aid in your exploration of the intriguing realm of Indian cinema. We offer your go-to resource for all things related to the Indian film business thanks to our extensive database of movies, actors, directors, and producers. 

We provide everything you need to remain up to date with the most recent industry news and trends, from Bollywood superstars to regional movie hits. The Film India is the one-stop-shop for everything Indian cinema, whether you are a devoted fan or an aspiring director. So download our app right away and be ready to discover Indian cinema's enchantment like never before!

With numerous sectors serving viewers nationwide, the Indian film industry is a vibrant and diverse society. There is enough to suit all tastes in Indian cinema, from the flash and splendor of Bollywood to the honest, raw narrative of provincial cinema. The Bollywood industry app provides users with access to data about several film-related sectors, including Bollywood, Marathi, Gujarati, and Bhojpuri. Let's look more closely at each of these sectors.

Bollywood Industry App:

The most recognized and important movie business in India is Bollywood. Bollywood, which is based in Mumbai, creates hundreds of films each year, majority of which are box office successes. 

Bollywood films are renowned for their lavish song and dance numbers, oversized characters, and epic love stories. The Film India application gives users access to the most recent Bollywood developments and news, including movie updates, gossip about celebrities, and a great deal more.

Marathi Film Industry App:

The Marathi film industry is one of India's earliest and most prestigious regional film businesses. Marathi film, which is based in the Indian state of Maharashtra, is renowned for its realistic narrative and socially pertinent topics. 

Many of the Marathi films that have received critical praise both in India as well as overseas deal with subjects like female injustice, politics, and caste. Users of the Film India app have access to news and rumors from the business as well as details on the most recent Marathi films.

Gujarati Film Industry App:

One of India's regional movie industries with the quickest growth is Gujarati cinema. As a result of the success of films like "Chhello Divas" and "Gujjubhai the Great," Gujarati movies, which is based there, has experienced a recent rise in popularity. 

Gujarati films frequently mix comedy, theater, and passion; many of these films are renowned for their catchy musical compositions and energetic dance sequences. Users of the Film India app have access to the most recent information and developments in the Gujarati film industry.

Bhojpuri Film Industry App:

The Bhojpuri film industry is local and serves viewers in Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Bihar. Many Bhojpuri films have developed a sort of cult status among viewers in these states due to their racy dance numbers and extravagant action scenes. Users of the Film India app have access to news and rumors from the business and details on the most recent Bhojpuri films.

In conclusion, the Indian film industry is a thriving and diverse sector that caters to a wide range of tastes. There is no shortage of choices in Indian cinema, whether you prefer Bollywood blockbusters, socially conscious Marathi cinema, or bawdy Bhojpuri films. 

The Film India app provides users with access to data about a number of film-related industries, including Bollywood, Marathi, Gujarati, and Bhojpuri. The app is the ideal resource for anyone interested in discovering the fascinating world of Indian cinema because to its plethora of features and data. Why then wait? Explore everything the Indian film business has to offer by downloading The Film India, an app for the Marathi film industry, right away!

[anastkantdhangar]

Why India’s Social Milieu Needs An Urgent Contemplation

India, traditionally, has been offering astounding variety in virtually every aspect of social life - diversities of ethnic, linguistic, regional, economic, religious, class, and caste groups crosscut Indian society, which gives light to its very inclusive, secular and democratic character. But why there has been a social unrest lately?

India ranks 144th on the World Happiness Index out of a total 156 countries on the list, even behind the likes of Pakistan, ranked 66th, and Bangladesh, ranked 107th.

17th June, 2019, a 24-year old man called Tabrez Ansari was mob-lynched in Jharkhand. He was tied to a pole sometime around midnight, and was beaten brutally till 6 in the morning, and was also forced to chant Hindu sayings. As usual, police arrived late, Tabrez was taken to the hospital, where even his blood pressure was not recorded. He died four days later.

Kashmiri Pandits were victims to a similar unfortunate happening. They were forced to exodus from their own home, and ever since, Kashmir has been even more of a hot topic.

It was a similar mob which chased and killed Inspector Subodh Kumar Singh in December, 2018 in Bulandshahr. He was trying to control a mob that had gone on the rampage after cow carcasses were discovered nearby the locality. The same mob also raised slogans against the police during the unfortunate happening.

Back then, between 2015-2018 specifically, such things were done in the name of cows, an animal which holds a religious significance in Hindu mythology. Considerable amount of such happenings on the name of cow slaughtering frequently grabbed news headlines back then, and as a consequence, consumption of beef in India saw some low. When reports of cow being starved to death in official government shelters started coming in, and also about that stray cattle were destroying crops and farmers were not very pleased with it, politics abandoned cows. It is obvious that cows, along with other animals, need to be protected, also given the fact that dairy products are a must, there needs more to be done to protect and nurse them. But the project of fear and violence that had been started, still continues in various forms.

But, unfortunately, cases of mob-lynchings still take place in our beloved India. The very recent case of Palghar district in Maharashtra, where two Hindu saints, while being in police custody and being taken to Gujarat, were attacked by locals. Reports suggest that the rumors were spread in the area about a gang which abducts children, and on the suspicion of the same, the saints were beaten to death, while the act of police standing quietly beside raised many questions.

A particular section of society, including sections of media, left no stone unturned to give it a communal angle. And there is no denying that there are communal and casteist angles to most of such cases, but there is a larger angle to it. The fact that somehow normal and a routine act it has become to lynch anyone you disagree with, who is outnumbered, is a thing which we need to question. What message are we passing on to the youth? Aspiring to be a global superpower, what are we projecting ourselves as?

The Larger Picture

Democracy has space for various views, expressing dissent in a dignified manner, solving issues, but no democracy can justify use of violence or any arbitrary means to deal with dissent. The very feeling of people that they too are ours should not be compromised at any cost.

The fact that the frequency of such acts has increased in last few years outlines that a message has been passed on to the society, especially the youth, that to beat up someone who does not agree with you, or who expresses any or some form of dissent is a normal practice. Of course, there also has to be some manner and dignity in which dissent should be expressed in a democratic society. But to suppress dissent brutally should not be a solution in a civil society.

This the reason why a new debate had acquired the headlines for some time about whether and how India has been growing intolerant rapidly, but the media and the viewers, the public, a large part of it, did not pay much attention to it. This was and is, what I believe, still a relevant question to ask and explore.

A considerable section of the youth has grasped that dissent or disagreement can be or has to be suppressed, even if it needs violence, which is more than worrisome. This is very much evident owing to recent JNU Campus Violence amongst students back in winter during anti-CAA protests. And the youth today, is the future tomorrow, which is why this makes it even more worrisome.

This even stops many from expressing their views, fearing that might get beaten up by the people having other views, and by not letting other ideas to be out there in the society, the prevailing ideas of the authorities are being hailed as champions. This is where we are failing as a democratic society. We have stopped or started to prevent asking questions.

A democratic society is always full of different ideas, views and perspectives, that is the beauty of democracy. A democratic society always cleaves up, if a one and only idea prevails in the society, there has to be something wrong, we are never going to realize what's wrong in such a scenario, and we have contemporary examples of such autocracies. And there were reasons why human, with time, switched from monarchy to democracy, he liked the idea of discussing various angles and coming up with one which could be best, as it will cover as many as loopholes, angles and point of views as possible, for the best of interests for every section of the society.

The Core Youth Issue

India’s 65% population comprises of people aged 35 or below, making it potentially one of the youngest country in the world, but what’s fresh in them? 

A child learns most of the civil and moral values at home, he learns what he sees, and tends to practice the same, this is the normal scenario. What he learns through the education system, along with his moral values, is somewhat an outline of what kind of a person one is, how one’s attitude is. And India’s education system has been questioned ever since.

The Indian government’s very own draft education policy tells us that National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) rates 68% of our Universities average or below average, and 91% of our colleges are rated average or below average. These second-and third-grade colleges would have produced generations of average or below average students and scholars.

Today’s youth of India has been in the making for decades. A great deal of efforts must have been put in to finish off all the curiosity and hunger for knowledge and information. The youth no longer wants to understand why a system made them spend lakhs of rupees studying, when at the end most of them could not find jobs which could even earn them Rs.20,000 per month, but still are repaying their education loans. It is the official data released back in 2018 that around 67% families in India survive with a monthly family income of Rs. 10,000 or below.

Those who demand information, who understand their world, those who question the status quo, are the ones who sustain democracies. Can we expect such democratic ideals from the youth of a country where 91% colleges and 68% Universities are average or below average? 65% of Indians might be under the age of 35, but there’s little sign of anything fresh in their thinking. Their minds are not young. They were first burdened with great ignorance, and now they’ve been blinded by communalism.

With 91% colleges being second and third rate, it was inevitable that the youth is kept away from the realm of knowledge. This must have had a large say on why WhatsApp University became so popular, the very messages people received on their private chats must have felt to them that they now had an access to knowledge, the very fact that it was so easily accessible, made it very impactful. Lies and misleading information designed to prejudice them and incite them to violence now began to reach their smartphones as personal texts. 

Fear Of Speaking Out (FOMO FOSO)

Our Lok Sabha has passed amendments to Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act last year, that gives authorities the power to declare any individual a ‘terrorist’. After it was amended, many social workers who have worked for the under-privileged for years, and raised important issues which was not in the best of interests for the authorities, have been imprisoned under UAPA.

As an obvious consequence, many have held themselves back to not speak out on issues they would have spoken on otherwise, the fear of intolerance of some sections of the society which may turn ugly and the fear of trolls of social media of the great IT Cell may also have been the reasons for the same.

There was a very popular dissent outrage in the form of protests in the form of anti-CAA-NRC protests. Protests in cities and college campuses took place across the nation, some also turned ugly as violence broke out in certain protests. To counter anti-CAA-NRC protests, pro-CAA-NRC protests were also being held in various parts of the country, which was first of its kind. The national lockdown owing to the coronavirus pandemic has brought the topic to a stop, but during this lockdown, various student leaders of anti-CAA-NRC have been charged under UAPA.

JP Narayan addressing a rally during JP movement in 1974. Many scholars speculate that the real Emergency started not in 1975, but in 1974.

In the history of independent India, its hard to remember any other popular mass protest where people across the nation came to roads to express dissent to the authorities, only one such example crosses our minds - the JP Narayan movement in 1974, during the time when Indira Gandhi used to be the PM of India, which mostly included students, and was ultimately suppressed after imposition of Emergency in 1975. But owing to a new practice we have accepted of labeling every sound that questions the authorities as anti-nationals or leftists.

India has had a history of patriarchy, which still prevails in many forms. Women in India, historically, have not been provided equal rights and recognition as men do. In such a nation, be it in the name of anti-CAA-NRC, such a large all-women protest of a scale as big as Shaheen Bagh is a very, very rare thing. Irrespective of our political affiances and interests, the fact that historically deprived women actually came out and led a mass protest on their own, which lasted for more than 3 months and has come to a haul owing to the pandemic, this certainly deserved some thoughts.

Motive of the protest, political interests and such stuffs can be and should be questioned, but in the process we should also give some recognition to things which are rare and important.

We all may share different political thoughts, different political affiliations, but at the end of the day, we all belong to one nation, and our ideas should be for the best of interests for our nation and its people as a whole.

[meetdheeraj]

Actor, Writer, Theater Personality Girish Karnad Turning Up To Protest Against Lynchings Despite Being Unwell

People across the nation and even some parts of the world are turning up in large numbers against public lynchings of people across the nation especially of Muslims and Dalits over alleged eating and storing of beef, killing or transporting of cows, or at places just because you belong to a certain community.

The trigger to protest has been the stabbing to death of 15-year-old Junaid Khan on a moving train barely a week ago. But there were scores of others before. Pehlu Khan, a dairy farmer was beaten to death for transporting cattle, Mohammad Akhlaq who was lynched in Dadri over suspicion of storing beef, before him, there was the murder of Mohsin Sheikh. And in between, there were scores of others. Recently DSP Ayyub Pandith was beaten to death in Kashmir. In between Farrukh was killed for being an atheist. Make no mistake, it isn’t just Muslims that are killed mobs have ‘mistakenly’ killed Hindus as well. There was flogging of Dalits in Una which resulted in widespread protests over dead cows. The Recent killing of four in Jharkhand over rumors of child kidnapping. The list is long, names a plenty but in all, it’s the mob that rises over rumor and suspicion, and murders people while they beg to be heard, they fold their hands and plead the crowd to stop but the crowd cares none. They go ahead and kill their prey like savages.

People have written on lengths about the injustice meted out to certain communities over their food habits or just because they practice a certain religion different from perpetrators. There have been enough columns against mob violence and lynchings. There is no doubt, such acts are wrong. Forget innocents, even if someone is criminal, you or mob have no rights to murder him/her. You can’t lynch, fog or beat to death someone on suspicion, or for any reason. Your job is to inform the police. Let them investigate and let courts punish. India is a democratic nation which is governed by rules and regulations. And lynchings are illegal by law, so far at least. If you believe otherwise, if you believe mob-violence or lynchings have a place in a democratic, law-abiding society, then please consider not reading any further. The rest who believe mob-violence shouldn’t be the norm (agree with not agree with protests), you can continue.

There was a considerable crowd in the protests. But that is not to say, all supported the protests. Some pointed out few anomalies.

Lynchings have occurred before Modi too

Yes, they have. There are two aspects to this. One, their numbers have increased considerably after 2014. As IndiaSpend piece pointed out, 86% Dead In Cow-Related Violence Since 2010 Are Muslim; 97% Attacks After 2014. Second, what if there has been violence before? “Whataboutery” is fine. It serves the purpose of bringing out the hypocrisy of people. Did you, the reader, knew about lynchings and mob violence before 2014? You might have, you might have not. If you did, did you cringe? If you didn’t know about it, it was probably because of media not covering it. There must be stimuli to react to anything. Without that stimuli, how and to what would one react? Without the knowledge of injustice, what would you protest against? ‘It had happened before too’ can’t be the reason why it should happen again now. Mob violence and lynchings are wrong, then, now or in future, it doesn’t matter when. So come out of that shell and go shout “Not In My Name”.

This Is Political.

Of course, it is. Anything that has to do with public affairs is political. This too is. Saba Dewan, Delhi-based filmmaker, whose Facebook post paved way for these protests, told Huffington Post in an interview,

Over the past few years, as one was watching and witnessing the systemic violence that is being unleashed on Dalit, Muslims and minorities, there was a rising sense of disquiet about what the hell was happening. There was discomfort that the government has chosen to stay quiet about the attacks on Muslims. In some ways, you become complicit in this violence by keeping quiet. I didn’t want to be complicit in this. I wasn’t a part of this. I am an ordinary citizen. I have never done street-level protests. Yet, the tipping point came with the lynching of Junaid. The first lynching in 2015 shook us up. Over the last two-and-a-half years, lynchings were getting normalised and that was frightening. But Junaid was just a child. He was 15 and got killed by a mob near Delhi, my city. It was shattering. I was upset that evening and kept wondering why someone wasn’t starting an organised protest so that I could join it. We wait for an eternity for someone to protest, but we are the citizens of the country and we have a stake in it. We had no idea how this would grow and pan out. I just asked some people on Facebook if we can do this protest. The response was very encouraging.Then someone suggested we make an event page. The next morning we realised that this was going viral.

I don’t know if protests were orchestrated by any political party or not but they happened. And of course, the opposition parties supported them and voiced their opinions in as many similar ways as BJP did with Anna Movement against then government of Manmohan Singh. Ruling party had then called Team Anna as B-Team of Congress. Ruling dispensation always tries to discredit the protesters. Don’t fall into their trap.

Why not protest on farm suicides or other issues? 

You are right. They should. People should come out in large numbers when farmers protest. Many do. But hold on, why does a protest require its participants to first participate into another? Can that not follow after this as well? In any case, even if they don’t, how does that matter. You feel strongly about something and then you come and support that cause. Simple. This isn’t algebra where Y can come only after X. Don’t mix up different issues.

Anyway, people have every right to discredit the protesters, call hypocrisy of those who are attending, throw data at them of past murders, but do you support what is happening in the name of religion? Do you support people being killed over bovines? Do you support mob violence? If not, then go on. Do we want the mob violence to continue or do we want it to end? If we wish it to end then we need to ask for its end. And that time is now.

“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” – Chinese Proverb

To plant or to protest and ask for change, the best time always is, now, at this very moment.

It is failure of law and order, not BJP

R Jagannathan wrote a piece in Swarajya Magazine titled, Roots Of Mob Violence Lie In Lack Of Police Reform, Not In BJP’s Rise To Power. He is right. But partially. Yes, police are responsible for this violence as law and order are their domain. In fact, at few places police has stood guard while thugs burned property, beaten people and at few times, they themselves have shot people dead. But government at large is responsible too. One, it controls the police. The other question is, who is emboldening these religious fanatics? Why has the violence increased after Modi took power? Has government taken action against the police for not acting? Who will bring out the police reforms? Why have they not?

Difference between the past and present violence 

In past when any such killings occurred, anyone from government condemned such violence outright without any ifs and buts. But now, people from the government are looking ways to not Condemn it. They are pointing to lapses here and there, asking to investigate whether meat in a refrigerator was beef or not, etc. What if the meat was beef? Does that justify public lynching? Lynchings or mob-violence in past were stray incidents but today they have been normalized. We have heard so many of them that we have become numb towards human suffering. Don’t forget, the body of Akhlaq’s murderer was draped in tricolor and the function was attended by a government minister. If this isn’t institutionalizing violence then what is?

Primarily, the government is not speaking of these violent acts. Prime Minister Narendra Modi who is otherwise so vocal and active on Twitter hardly finds time to respond to such violence. Ministers or spokespersons who do, go into technicalities, into investigating meat etc. This attitude sends wrong signs to people at large. It shows government supports these acts albeit covertly. And that’s worrying.

There are also people who are going into nitty gritty’s and pointing out how they forgot to mention a particular his and her killing. Fair point. But go make a placard, write down the names they forgot and the one’s you remember, go out and show it to the world. We are all humans, flawed in our own ways, no one is complete nor anyone perfect. We need each one to complete each another. But we all agree on some common questions. Like here, we agree on fatality of mob violence and lynchings. No sane society can support such inhumane acts. So forget politics, and lend your support.

Call their hypocrisy, shout their omissions but first, let’s be loud and clear on one thing that we all agree —Enough Is Enough — No More Murders — Not In My Name.

Some Photos from the protests across the world (courtesy: Twitter and Internet at large)

Lynchings Have Occurred In India Before As Well But Do We Want Them To Continue Or Stop? People across the nation and even some parts of the world are turning up in large numbers against public lynchings of people across the nation especially of Muslims and Dalits over alleged eating and storing of beef, killing or transporting of cows, or at places just because you belong to a certain community.

[marymosley]

Hate Speech & Indian Politics: Challenges to Freedom of Speech and Expression

Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution of India in its widest terms confers upon the citizens of the country, the right to freedom of speech and expression. The right to hold opinions without interference on important issues in society and impart information and ideas plays a vital role in the healthy development process of any society. Free speech is a necessary part of democracy’s marketplace of ideas. However, striking a balance between freedom of expression and prohibition of hate speech is a complex challenge.

  What is Hate Speech?

The term ‘Hate Speech’ as such is not defined under Indian law but the term has been used invariably to mean any expression that is insulting, abusive or intimidating or that attacks a person or group of persons on the basis of attributes such as race, religion, ethnicity, sex, caste, creed etc. Unlike England, South Africa, Canada, and other western European nations, there is a dearth of any specific legislation on these Hate Speech in India. There are various provisions of Indian Penal Code, 1860 and Representation of the People Act, 1951 that try to provide punishment and relief against hate speech.

  Provisions under Indian Laws

Under Indian Penal Code, 1860:

·         Section 153A; penalizes promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony.

·         Section 153B; penalizes imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration.

·         Section 295A; penalizes injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class.

·         Section 298; penalizes uttering, words, etc., with deliberate intent to wound the religious feelings of any person.

·         Section 505 (1) & (2); penalizes publication or circulation of any statement, rumor or report causing public mischief and enmity, hatred or ill-will between classes.

  Under Representation of People Act, 1951:

·        Section 8 disqualifies a person from contesting the election if he/she is convicted for indulging in acts amounting to the illegitimate use of freedom of speech and expression.

·       Section 123(3A) and section 125 prohibits promotion of enmity on grounds of religion, race, caste, community or language in connection with election as a corrupt electoral practice and prohibits it.

  Dark Side of Indian Politics

If you ask ten people as to what a clean election is, there will be ten different responses but amongst all, people insist on ‘clean candidates’ for the elections to be effective. Being the largest serving democracy, the elections do take place duly but every single time the purpose is not met. It is one of the disturbing features of India’s electoral democracy where candidates with tainted and tarnished image emerge out as the winners of these elections and we fail to have good leaders to take us forward and to keep at par with the other progressing States.

  Facts and Figures

Talking about the figures, a total number of about 58 sitting Members of Parliament and Members of State Legislative Assemblies have declared cases of Hate Speech against them out of which 15 are sitting MPs of the Lower House i.e. Lok Sabha and rest 43 are sitting MLAs from different States. The party-wise breakdown of these numbers brings out a more astonishing fact that out of these 15 sitting MPs, a majority of 10 MPs are from the ruling party itself i.e. Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) and 01 each is from the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS), Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) and Shiv Sena (SHS).

  MLAs with cases of Hate Speech

Out of 43 sitting MLAs, the highest number of MLAs with declared cases related to Hate Speech are 11 from the State of Telangana followed by 09 MLAs from the State of Uttar Pradesh. The State of Bihar and Maharashtra contributes 04 MLAs each to the cause. 02 MLAs each are from the State of Uttarakhand and West Bengal and 01 MLA each Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, and Jharkhand have declared cases related to Hate Speech against themselves.

  Cases against some noted personalities

Various political heavyweights also have declared cases of Hate Speech against them. The Union Cabinet Minister for Drinking Water and Sanitation, Ms. Uma Bharti from the BJP has a total number of 13 pending cases against her with charges apart from those relating to Hate Speech, related to criminal intimidation[1], illegal payments in connection with an election[2] along with serious charges of Attempt to Murder.[3]

A leader of AIMIM party and Member of Parliament from the constituency of Hyderabad, Asaduddin Owaisi has pending cases with charges related to Statements conducing to public mischief, charge related to public nuisance in cases not otherwise provided for and many more.

Senior politicians such as Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi and Lal Krishna Advani from BJP have charges against them charge related to Promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony,[4] imputations, assertions prejudicial to national-integration[5] and charge related to Statements conducing to public mischief.[6]

  Conclusion

The political parties continue to field such candidates despite having serious criminal records against them. With the same MPs and MLAs contesting the elections again would be like old wine in new bottles. Therefore, candidates with past records of criminal charges must not be accepted. It is also necessary for media to play a pro-active role in disseminating information and making more and more people aware of their candidates to enable them to make a wise choice for a better tomorrow. If we really want to witness some changes, there is a need to identify the right people to stand for elections for a good governance.

  [1] Section 506, Indian Penal Code, 1860

[2] Section 171H, Indian Penal Code, 1860

[3] Section 307, Indian Penal Code, 1860

[4] Section 153A, Indian Penal Code, 1860

[5] Section 153B, Indian Penal Code, 1860

[6] Section 505, Indian Penal Code, 1860

Cases Stats Source: ADR Report

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[usnewsaggregator-blog]

The Shift: Forget Washington. Facebook’s Problems Abroad Are Far More Disturbing.

New Post has been published on https://usnewsaggregator.com/the-shift-forget-washington-facebooks-problems-abroad-are-far-more-disturbing/

The Shift: Forget Washington. Facebook’s Problems Abroad Are Far More Disturbing.

In Myanmar, the rise in anti-Rohingya sentiment coincided with a huge boom in social media use that was partly attributable to Facebook itself. In 2016, the company partnered with MTP, the state-run telecom company, to give subscribers access to its Free Basics program. Free Basics includes a limited suite of internet services, including Facebook, that can be used without counting toward a cellphone data plan. As a result, the number of Facebook users in Myanmar has skyrocketed to more than 30 million today from 2 million in 2014.

Photo

The number of internet users in Myanmar has skyrocketed, in large part thanks to Facebook’s efforts. Credit Mathieu Willcocks for The New York Times

“We work hard to educate people about our services, highlight tools to help them protect their accounts and promote digital literacy,” said Debbie Frost, a Facebook spokeswoman. “To be more effective in these efforts, we are working with civil society, safety partners, and governments — an approach we have found to be particularly important and effective in countries where people are rapidly coming online and experiencing the internet for the first time through a mobile phone.”

In India, where internet use has also surged in recent years, WhatsApp, the popular Facebook-owned messaging app, has been inundated with rumors, hoaxes and false stories. In May, the Jharkhand region in Eastern India was destabilized by a viral WhatsApp message that falsely claimed that gangs in the area were abducting children. The message incited widespread panic and led to a rash of retaliatory lynchings, in which at least seven people were beaten to death. A local filmmaker, Vinay Purty, told the Hindustan Times that many of the local villagers simply believed the abduction myth was real, since it came from WhatsApp.

“Everything shared on the phone is regarded as true,” Mr. Purty said.

In a statement, WhatsApp said, “WhatsApp has made communications cheaper, easier and more reliable for millions of Indians — with all the benefits that brings. Though we understand that some people, sadly, have used WhatsApp to intimidate others and spread misinformation. It’s why we encourage people to report problematic messages to WhatsApp so that we can take action.”

Facebook is not directly responsible for violent conflict, of course, and viral misinformation is hardly unique to its services. Before social media, there were email hoaxes and urban legends passed from person to person. But the speed of Facebook’s growth in the developing world has made it an especially potent force among first-time internet users, who may not be appropriately skeptical of what they see online.

Video

How Facebook Is Changing Your Internet

Behind the scenes, Facebook is involved in high-stakes diplomatic battles across the globe that have begun fragmenting the internet itself.

By JONAH M. KESSEL and PAUL MOZUR on Publish Date September 17, 2017. Photo by Albert Gea/Reuters. Watch in Times Video »

The company has made many attempts to educate users about the dangers of misinformation. In India and Malaysia, it has taken out newspaper ads with tips for spotting false news. In Myanmar, it has partnered with local organizations to distribute printed copies of its community standards, as well as created educational materials to teach citizens about proper online behavior.

But these efforts, as well-intentioned as they may be, have not stopped the violence, and Facebook does not appear to have made them a top priority. The company has no office in Myanmar, and neither Mr. Zuckerberg nor Ms. Sandberg has made any public statements about the Rohingya crisis.

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Correcting misinformation is a thorny philosophical problem for Facebook, which imagines itself as a neutral platform that avoids making editorial decisions. Facebook’s community standards prohibit hate speech and threats, but many harmful viral posts — such as a WhatsApp thread in Southern India that spread false rumors about a government immunization campaign — are neither hateful nor directly threatening, and they wouldn’t be prohibited under Facebook’s community standards as long as they came from authentic accounts. Fighting misinformation is especially difficult on WhatsApp, an app for private messaging, since there is no public information trail to fact-check.

Facebook has argued that the benefits of providing internet access to international users will ultimately outweigh the costs. Adam Mosseri, a Facebook vice president who oversees the News Feed, told a journalism gathering this month, “In the end, I don’t think we as a human race will regret the internet.” Mr. Zuckerberg echoed that sentiment in a 2013 manifesto titled “Is Connectivity a Human Right?,” in which he said that bringing the world’s population online would be “one of the most important things we all do in our lifetimes.”

That optimism may be cold comfort to people in places like South Sudan. Despite being one of the poorest and least-wired countries in the world, with only around 20 percent of its citizens connected to the internet, the African nation has become a hotbed of social media misinformation. As BuzzFeed News has reported, political operatives inside and outside the country have used Facebook posts to spread rumors and incite anger between rival factions, fostering violence that threatens to escalate into a civil war. A United Nations report last year determined that in South Sudan, “social media has been used by partisans on all sides, including some senior government officials, to exaggerate incidents, spread falsehoods and veiled threats, or post outright messages of incitement.”

These are incredibly complex issues, and it may be impossible for Facebook — which is, remember, a technology company, not a global peacekeeping force — to solve them overnight. But as the company’s response to the Russia crisis has proved, it’s capable of acting swiftly and powerfully when it feels its interests are threatened.

Information wars in emerging markets may not represent as big a threat to Facebook’s business as angry lawmakers in Washington. But people are dying, and communities are tearing themselves apart with the tools Facebook has built. That should qualify as an even greater emergency in Menlo Park.

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