The young generation, who make up the majority of social media users in Bangladesh, has to come forward to ensure communal harmony in the country, participants said at a radio show on Wednesday.
Using social media responsibly and carefully to curb divisiveness, stigma, hate speech and misinformation were also discussed at the show entitled “Communal Harmony: The Role of Young Society” aired by Radio Padma 99.2FM. International human rights organisation ARTICLE 19 organised the programme.
Speakers said communal harmony lies in the very foundation of Bangladesh and the youth should come forward to ensure that it is not disrupted in any way through the misuse of social media. As most social media users are young, they also need to be able to identify and counter misinformation, disinformation, fake news and rumours online.
While addressing the event, Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council Presidium Member Kajal Debnath said that there has always been a small vested group active in creating divisiveness among communities. “The youth need to be more aware of using social media to counter this wicked group,” he said.
Hasibur Rahman Bilu, a senior journalist and chief of the North Bengal Region for Independent Television, said they had experienced that anarchy can easily be created on the pretext of religion. So, the users need to be careful before posting, liking, sharing or commenting on anything sensational on Facebook.
“Besides, the Facebook authorities are also responsible for recent incidents of communal violence. Alongside its business, Facebook must share responsibility for maintaining social stability in the country,” he added.
Adibasi Chhatra Parishad Vice-President Sabittre Hembram said that the indigenous people in Bangladesh are victims of both religious communalism and social discrimination.
“While cultural diversity is widely acknowledged in Bangladesh, the diversity of the ethnic communities is often socially degraded. Indigenous people experience discrimination in all spheres of social life only because of their marginalised status, language and physical appearance. Young people of all religion and ethnic communities must come forward to address this issue,” Hembram said.
Sabrina Mamataj, Programme Associate and Anwar Rosen, Programme Officer of ARTICLE 19 South Asia, also spoke on the occasion while Radio Padma official Mehzabin Kotha moderated the programme.
