by Thanuri Jayodya
Published on Ceylon Today on 23rd May 2024.
The movement of globalisation successfully turns the different cultures of the world into one culture where people have some common cultural beliefs and shared values. With the beginning of this transformation, some fields successfully gained the attention of people of the whole world. One of them is the technological field. Technological advancement started to change the world into a very different place where people can connect through borders without travelling. This was a great opportunity for people to share and learn about various matters and share their experiences. This political, cultural, and economic integration changed the world into a wholly different and complex place. In this different place, there are both positive and negative impacts.
In the period of technological advancement, online disinformation has already become a serious threat to world democracies. As a result of globalisation, the technology is renewing day by day. Due to this, the threat of online disinformation is also getting stronger and stronger. Is there a chance to combat this threat and safeguard Sri Lanka’s democracy? If it is so, then how?
What is Disinformation?
Disinformation can be defined in many ways. European Commission says that ‘Disinformation is false or misleading content that is spread to deceive or secure economic or political gain, and which may cause public harm’ (Online Disinformation | Shaping Europe’s Digital Future’, n.d.). Disinformation can be spread through traditional and digital platforms. The disinformation that spreads through digital platforms is called online disinformation. Because of the advancing technology, we can see that the disinformation spread through digital platforms is faster and more effective than the disinformation that spread through traditional platforms. Consequences of the online disinformation can be damaging and wide-ranging. It has a powerful influence over the social, political, economic and cultural aspects of a country.
What is Democracy?
Democracy can be defined as a system of governance where the people make all the significant decisions on leadership, laws, policies, and other specific aspects of a State (Dahl, Shapiro, and Froomkin 2019). In a democratic government, principles of equality, accountability, transparency, human rights, free and fair elections, judicial independence and rule of law are valued and protected.
Impact of Online Disinformation
Disinformation is capable of manipulating people and misleading them. It can manipulate the opinion of the public, spread violence, and even capable of weakening the governments. When we talk about online disinformation, we have to focus on how this threat affects the lives of people and the government. So according to that question, we can see that fake information takes the attention away from the real incidents, discourages the people and makes them fear unnecessary matters, and false suspicions, grow distrust towards the specific parties and makes them doubt everything without any specific clarification. The most important negative impact generated by disinformation is people losing trust in democratic values and the government. With this confusion, people will start to believe in other anti-democratic values and will step towards those without realising the truth.
Furthermore, with the rapid technological development very powerful digital platforms were invented. The most common one of them is Artificial Intelligence (AI). AI will help to create and edit things that never occurred as the most reliable ones. Using this, terrorists can create footage and statements aiming at the political stability of a country. Example: false footage rotated about the Israel-Hamas conflict (‘As Israel-Hamas Conflict Intensifies, Fake Videos Go Viral on Social Media’ n.d.). Additionally, the uncontrollable use of social media platforms, and checking over the gossip- websites are triggering the spread of disinformation.
The Impact of Online Disinformation on SL’s Democracy
Like many other developing countries, Sri Lanka is also not immune to this rapid spread of disinformation and tolerates the fast-spreading consequences of it. Especially which are affecting the political and legal order of the country.
If someone or a unit intentionally disseminates disinformation about a country’s government, policies, or military plans and strength it will be a huge challenge to overcome. Because a situation like this will steal the trust of citizens and will break the law and order of a country. Not only that, but it will also be a reason to lose the trust of international parties.
When it comes to Sri Lanka, there were many instances/incidents where we have experienced negative consequences caused by online disinformation which directly affected the country’s democracy. Some of the main incidents are listed below:
1. Easter Sunday Bomb Attacks 2019
2. Covid-19 Pandemic
3. ‘Aragalaya-2022’
In April 2019, on the day of Easter Sunday, six places in Colombo including three churches were blasted by terrorist suicide bombers (BBC 2019). Relating to this incident there was a lot of disinformation spread through online platforms. With this, Islamophobia emerged. Moreover, because of this false information, there was chaos all over the country and people started to attack other people, especially Muslims and with this civil rights were notably ignored.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, the spread of online disinformation about the quarantine pattern and government action to safeguard people and the country led people to indulge in wrongdoings, such as escaping from specific treatments. Furthermore, there was news about fake curing methods such as home remedies eg: ‘Dhammika Paniya’ which was promoted and marketed through the media (‘Dhammika Paniya and the Wave of Fake News That Followed – Journo.lk’ 2021). This false information created a false sense of protection from the disease and people started behaving in panic. This situation had a huge and direct impact on citizens’ health and the county’s law and order.
Disinformation which spread through the digital platform during the series of mass protests in 2022, did a big damage to Sri Lanka’s democracy. Even today, its influence can be seen in society and sometimes political decisions are also made taking into consideration the influence caused by the mass protests which were peaceful and later violent in nature. As a result, death and destruction to lives and properties were reported and civil rights were neglected. The rule of law was highly influenced and political stability was broken too.
As we can see, the spread of disinformation was one of the main driving forces of all those recent incidents which have been serious threats to Sri Lanka’s democracy. Even though the Sri Lankan government made some powerful decisions to overcome this threat, such as suspending the use of social media for a specified period, such methods couldn’t prevent the spread of disinformation through online platforms. Hence, is there anything else we can do to combat online disinformation?
What is Fact-Check? Can we mitigate/prevent the negative influence of Online Disinformation thru’ Fact-Checking?
Is it possible to prevent the spread of online disinformation? The answer to this question is simply ‘NO’. However, we can take action to mitigate the consequences of it which will lead to prevention in future by employing various methods. One of the pivotal ways to do so is by Fact-Checking. What is Fact-Checking? According to (Parker 2022) “Fact-checking is the method used to verify the integrity of unsettled reporting and statements”. The aim of fact-checking is none other than to correct judgments held by people who believe in disinformation. As mentioned earlier, the repercussions of disinformation are widespread. Especially when we focus on the repercussions of false information on Sri Lanka’s Democracy, we can realise that even a single false information that aims government, institutions, or leaders of the country can have a huge impact on the democratic order of Sri Lanka. People take advantage of social media platforms and technological companies that provide convenient means of contact and knowledge exchange. Through those sites, people intentionally spread false information for their own benefit. Because of its ‘fast-spread’, it is hard to cover up this false information. To have a clear mind about a statement or a report, we can check the facts. It means that we can check if the information spread through online platforms can be proven as the actual truth. Anyone can do a fact-check as they please. Fact-checking can be done by both individuals and collectively. Everyone can check whether the information at hand that is spread is fact, false, or defaced.
When talking about fact-checking; it not only has benefits but also has its limitations. In terms of benefits, Fact-checks help to find the accuracy of the information, identify and mitigate the consequences of disinformation, and hold individuals and groups accountable for their actions/information etc. Limitations of fact-checking are that it will take a lot of time, at times it can be an expensive task, and the people will only consider about few things concerning them, and most importantly even though fact-checking is done it will be hard to change the manipulated minds of people.
Furthermore, we can see that the negative impacts that have been already created to the democracy by the spread of disinformation, cannot be taken back. It will take a long time to fix that damage. And maybe nobody can ever fill some of the space that is left.
Conclusion- How to safeguard SL’s democracy by combating online disinformation through Fact-Checking.
Over the world, there are many democracies. Sri Lanka is also one of them. The spread of online disinformation, which is an obstacle to every democratic State in the world, is having a strong impact on Sri Lanka too. Unfortunately, because of online disinformation, Democracy is becoming weak. Democratic values are no longer protected. Internal conflicts are appearing. The democratic ideas and values that have been withering without being noted by anyone will begin to have a great impact on us, Sri Lankans, over time. Today, due to disinformation being spread about Sri Lanka, all foreign relations of Sri Lanka and the relationship between the society and the government are facing a high risk. This disinformation which spreads through online platforms is spreading so fast that one person alone cannot down-tone it. Everyone’s work is essential to control this situation and preserve the democratic values of Sri Lanka. If the government, citizens and other influence groups work towards it objectively, the democratic qualities of Sri Lanka will be improved. In this way, each of these parties is free to perform fact-checking without repercussions. If the State or democratic qualities of the State are being influenced through social media, we people, can check and then believe the facts without believing as they are. It will be a strength in protecting Sri Lankan democracy and its values. Especially, everyone should keep in mind that there is no obligation to take legal action after a ‘fact-check’ has proven that relevant news is false.
Recommendations
‘Fact-Checking’ must be promoted and strengthened to Combat Online Disinformation and ensure the future of Sri Lanka’s Democracy.
How can we strengthen Fact-Checking in SL?
First of all, we can check the facts and accept the facts only if they are true, without accepting them as they are. If it is proven to be false, we can share the actual truth with the people who believe in disinformation and correct their wrong ideas. This way we can be partially satisfied that people will not behave in a negative way which can be a threat to the country’s democracy. Secondly, if social media users see any false or inappropriate news or information being circulated on social media platforms, they can report it. Thirdly both the government and private sector should work towards fact-checking. And, ‘Fact-Checking’ institutions should be initiated and developed under a specific Legal Authority. Furthermore, the government should make policies to strengthen the Fact-Checking process. Moreover, existing Fact-Checking Platforms should be encouraged to carry out their work. Legislation on the spread of disinformation should also be strengthened. Finally and most importantly, the public should be educated on disinformation, misinformation, and fact-checking processes. If society is aware of these topics, even if they encounter online fake news they will think twice before believing them. In fact, it is not enough even if a ‘Fact-Check’ is done. Facts should be spread at the same speed as how disinformation is spread. The more the public is aware of the truth, there will be less chaos and less bad influence throughout society.
Apparently, when ‘Fact-Checking’ is promoted and strengthened the country’s democratic ideals will be safeguarded and restored, thus ensuring a secure future for Sri Lanka.
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* Ms. Thanuri Jayodya is an Intern (Research)at the Institute of National Security Studies (INSS), the premier think tank on National Security established and functioning under the Ministry of Defence. The opinion expressed are her own and not necessarily reflective of the institute or the Ministry of Defence.