HATE SPEECH BILL AND THE FIGHT AGAINST MISINFORMATION ON SOCIAL MEDIA
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HATE SPEECH BILL AND THE FIGHT AGAINST MISINFORMATION ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Chapter one
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
Since the dawn of time, man has naturally demonstrated a desire to express himself in matters impacting his overall well-being and the growth of the community in which he lives.
Although, as societies evolve, this innermost yearning has increasingly been met with repressive tendencies in the form of harsh laws, expulsion, physical torture, and so on imposed by the ruling class, man has remained fearless in his pursuit of free expression of views (Layefa and Johnson, 2016).
According to Oloyede (2008), despite the unparalleled utility and indispensability of free speech and press freedom to the proper and progressive functioning of society, many repressive and fascist governments, as well as numerous nefarious groups and institutions, and diabolical individuals, continue to harass, maltreat, victimise, terrorise, imprison, and persecute these noble institutions.
Indeed, despite the ominous dangling of the sword of repression, torture, and death, among other things, against free speech and free press, man remains undaunted to pursue them, much to the dismay of free speech opponents.
Democracy is widely recognised as the most popular form of government on the planet. It is largely recognised as a government of, for, and by the people.
According to Obasanjo and Mabgunje (1992), as cited in Ogah and Ogeyni (2014), democracy as an ideology is a governance philosophy that prioritises citizens’ basic freedoms or fundamental human rights, the rule of law, the right to property, the free flow of information, and the right to choose between competing political positions.
Simply said, democracy is a political system in which the people have power rather than a small clique or oligarchy, where the rule of law, majority rule, and constitutionalism are fundamental guiding principles of governance.
In this context, Ramaswamy (2007) stated that democracy entails rule by the people rather than one individual or group. He went on to claim that, unlike other systems like monarchy, dictatorship, or oligarchy, where there is a distinction between the ruler and the ruled, the people are both rulers and controlled.
Nigeria joined the League of Democratic Nations in 1999. One of the distinguishing features of a true democracy is freedom. The ability to be free is most visible in one’s ability to express oneself freely without fear of physical or psychological consequences (from the government or otherwise). The boundaries of free expression have become more malleable.
This could be attributed to globalisation, which has physically removed all borders and is primarily driven by the internet. The internet has transformed freedom of expression, which was previously limited to television, radio, and print media, among other outlets.
We now have social media, which allows individuals or groups to sit in the comfort of their bedrooms or offices and, with the click of a mouse or the tap of a screen, express themselves freely to millions of other users who are not bound by the physically defined borders and boundaries of countries or regions (Joel, 2013).
However, freedom of expression and press refers to the right to speak anything one wishes, subject to the consequences of the law, which, in a constitutional democracy, must be fair and justiciable. Thus, liberty, often known as freedom of expression, and the press are two distinct notions.
These include imposing no prior limitation on publishing and press liberty; that is, there is no prior limit on what can or cannot be published. There should be no previous publication reprimands.
Everyone is free to share his or her feelings, facts, information, or publications with the public. Denying this liberty undermines free expression and the press (Joel, 2013).
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