New York: Pakistan has condemned the use of disinformation by occupying States to suppress the masses’ voices in Occupied Kashmir and Palestine, underlining the need for stepped up efforts to combat that pervasive threat.
“The negative impact of fake news and disinformation is magnified when states employ these tactics in situations of foreign occupation to suppress the voices of innocent people, denied basic freedoms, including the UN-sanctioned right to self-determination,” Pakistani delegate Amanat Ali told the United Nations General Assembly’s Fourth Committee.
Speaking in a debate on ‘Questions Regarding to Information’, he stated that Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) and Occupied Palestinian Territory “are a case in point.”
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“Central to this manipulation are internet blackouts, restriction, censorship, and restrictive media laws enforced by occupying authorities,” Amanat Ali, said, saying, “These actions are intended in order to delegitimize freedom movements and create an atmosphere of fear, violence and intimidation.”
Pakistan has said that the harmful impact of fake news and disinformation is magnified when states employ these tactics in situations of foreign occupation to suppress the voices of people denied basic freedoms, including the UN-sanctioned right to self-determination.
In his… pic.twitter.com/kt2lxqg6mF
— Permanent Mission of Pakistan to the UN (@PakistanUN_NY) November 6, 2024
Noting that fake news and misinformation dent trust in the UN, particularly in the context of increasing geopolitical tensions, current genocidal war in Gaza as well as climate threats, he called for a “sustained communications drive” by the Department of Global Communications (GDC), in cooperation with Member Nations, to highlight the UN’s contributions and achievements.
Highlighting the need for cooperation and collaboration with tech firms, like Google and Facebook, the Pakistani delegate warned that their “profit motives” might conflict with the cooperation needed to curb the challenge of disinformation. Therefore, he recommended that the Global Principles for Information Integrity must address the role of individuals in spreading disinformation and misinformation, as well as “empowering users via media literacy”.
