Tag: Hate speech

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USA

Ahmaud Arbery’s killers found guilty of hate crimes

Pic credits Wikipedia

 All three men were previously convicted of murder in a Georgia state court and sentenced to life in prison for the fatal shooting….reports Asian Lite News

The three white men convicted of murdering African American Ahmaud Arbery were found guilty of hate crimes by a federal jury in the southeastern US state of Georgia on Tuesday.

The jury found father and son Greg and Travis McMichael and their neighbour William “Roddie” Bryan guilty of all the federal charges they individually faced, including hate crimes, attempted kidnapping and the use of a firearm to commit a crime.

The McMichaels and Bryan chased Arbery, a 25-year-old African American man who was jogging on the public streets of a Brunswick neighbourhood in Georgia, in trucks on February 23, 2020.

People take part in a rally against anti-Asian hate crimes in San Mateo, California, the United States, on Feb. 27, 2021. (Xinhua/Wu Xiaoling)

The three men cornered Arbery and Travis McMichael fatally shot him with a shotgun, Xinhua news agency reported.

Arbery was running with his hands empty and in plain view while never did he speak a word to his killers, nor make any threatening sound or gesture, according to court documents.

All three men were previously convicted of murder in a Georgia state court and sentenced to life in prison for the fatal shooting.

“We as a family will never get victory because Ahmaud is gone forever,” Ahmaud Arbery’s mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones, said outside the federal courthouse in Brunswick.

“No one should fear that if they go out for a run, they will be targeted and killed because of the colour of their skin,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.

The state of Georgia declared February 23 as Ahmaud Arbery Day to mark the gravity of his death and the subsequent criminal and federal cases.

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-Top News World News

Meta to tackle hate speech in Pakistan, UK

Research shows that challenging violent, extremist views with positive counter-speech is one of the most effective ways to combat hate and extremism….reports Asian Lite News

Meta (formerly Facebook) on Wednesday announced to expand its flagship counter-speech initiative to Pakistan and the UK to tackle violent extremism, terrorism and organised hate speech on its platforms.

Meta’s Redirect Initiative, already available in Australia, the US, Germany and Indonesia, is now entering Pakistan and the UK to “disrupt the connection between followers and the violent, extreme content they seek”.

Now, when someone in Pakistan or the UK searches on Facebook using words associated with organised hate or violent extremism, the top search result will be a link to resources and support for how to leave violence and extremism behind.

“We’re partnering with Shaoor Foundation in Pakistan and Exit UK in the UK,” said Meta.

Research shows that challenging violent, extremist views with positive counter-speech is one of the most effective ways to combat hate and extremism.

“Counter-speech is only effective if it comes from credible voices, so we’ve partnered with various NGOs and community groups on multiple counter-speech initiatives around the world including community programs, toolkits and research,” said Dr Nawab Osman, Asia Pacific Head of Counter-Terrorism and Dangerous Organizations at Meta.

Counter-speech involves responding to hateful, extremist narratives with empathy and alternative perspectives, rather than shutting these conversations down.

Shaoor Foundation has been working for many years, designing and implementing peace development programmes in Pakistan.

“Building a society that is inclusive, respectful and peaceful and involves engaging the entire community, enabling people to speak up and providing a safe, accessible space to get support. We are pleased to partner with Meta on the Redirect Initiative to help us scale our efforts and reach more people in need in Pakistan,” said Syed Ali Hameed, Executive Director at Shaoor Foundation

Meta said that it has a team of more than 350 dedicated specialists and sophisticated proactive detection technology to help it find and remove such hateful content quickly.

“Working in partnership with technology companies like Meta will help ensure the safety and well-being of the public and those that might be vulnerable online,” said Nigel Bromage, Founder of Exit UK.

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India News

SC seeks response on plea against Haridwar hate speeches

A bench headed by Chief Justice N.V. Ramana and comprising Justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli allowed the petitioners to approach local authorities with their plea …reports Asian Lite News

The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued notice to the Uttarakhand government on a petition by journalist Qurban Ali and former Patna High Court judge Anjana Prakash, seeking action against those who made hate speeches against the Muslim community at Dharam Sansad in Haridwar.

A bench headed by Chief Justice N.V. Ramana and comprising Justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli allowed the petitioners to approach local authorities with their plea to stop a proposed Dharam Sansad scheduled at Aligarh on January 23.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the petitioners, contended that Dharam Sansad is going to organise another congregation at Aligarh and some direction should be passed to restrain them from making hate speeches, while the top court is seized of the matter.

Sibal emphasized that various Dharam Sansad are scheduled in states, which are going to polls soon. Citing hate speeches, he said it is contrary to the ethos and values of this country and pressed for preventive steps to stop these people from making statements against a particular community.

On Monday, the top court had agreed to hear the petition, which sought an independent, impartial and credible probe into the matter by an SIT.

The plea, filed through advocate Sumita Hazarika, said: “Hate speeches consisted of open calls for genocide of Muslims in order to achieve ethnic cleansing. It is pertinent to note that the said speeches are not mere hate speeches but amount to an open call for murder of an entire community. The said speeches thus, pose a grave threat not just to the unity and integrity of our country but also endanger the lives of millions of Muslim citizens.”

According to the plea, the hate speeches were made between December 17-19, last year, in two events organised in Haridwar, by the controversial Yati Narsinghanand, and in Delhi, by an organisation self-styled as Hindu Yuva Vahini with the apparent objective of declaring war against a significant section of the Indian citizenry.

The plea submitted that despite the passage of almost three weeks, no effective steps have been taken by the police authorities including non-application of Sections 120B, 121A and 153B of the IPC, to the said hate speeches.

It further pointed out that the police authorities have registered two FIRs against 10 people who took part in the Haridwar Dharam Sansad but even in the said FIRs, only Sections 153A, 295A and 298 of the IPC have been invoked.

“The blatant inaction by the police also came into the forefront when a police officer’s video went viral on the Internet, wherein one of speakers of the aforementioned events openly acknowledged the officer’s allegiance with the organisers and speakers of the Dharam Sansad,” added the plea.

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