CyAN supports the event “Online Hate Speech: Can Social Media Reduce its Spread?”, which takes place on the 28th of February 2017 during the Social Media Week Lagos 2017 at Ibis Hotel, 23 Toyin Street, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria.
It commences at 10am prompt and will have as panellists cybersecurity expert Abdul-Hakeem Ajijola (CyAN member), APC National Publicity Secretary Bolaji Abdullahi, and thought leaders in the field of communications Ngozi Ife Anene and Obianuju Ndaguba. The event is open to the general public but will be of prime relevance and benefit to civil society groups, policy makers, the diplomatic community, bloggers and online journalists, telecommunications companies and internet service providers, victims and targets of cyber bullying and other forms of hate speech, millennials and indeed anyone who has a social media account. The panellists will provide their expert perspectives on the power of social media for the greater good of reducing violent extremism and preventing a repeat in Nigeria of the tragic genocide that took place in Rwanda in 1994.
As Bethphage’s Chief Executive Officer CyAN member and convener, Mr. Peter “Wordsmith” Eigbedion, observed, “Hate speech is becoming rampant in the Nigerian socio-political environment, and this is very obvious on the Internet. In a country already divided along ethnic and political lines, politics and the economic recession that Nigeria is currently in has allowed many citizens to become aggressively intolerant of each other online. The discourse at our event will hopefully initiate a series of events that will make for a peaceful society.”
More information about the event: https://www.facebook.com/events/1851989298375182/