The special Adviser recalled the Secretary-General’s visit to the region, his call for a cessation of hostilities and her office’s work in supporting inter-communal dialogue efforts with the UN Country Team there.
Solution is possible with commitment on the part of everyone – UN Special Adviser
Countering hate
He zeroed in on “vectors of attack,” including on critical infrastructure, via “traditional hacking”; distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, or malicious attempts to disrupt normal website traffic; and midsized and large attacks – or “microfloods” – that can significantly ramp-up the complexity of attacks.
She also cited “genocidal rhetoric” gleaned from Russian media that refers to Ukraine as a “fake nation” that does not “deserve to exist”.
Ukraine in focus
Beginning her briefing with a wider perspective, Wairimu Nderitu said that hateful and contentious narratives that form in the wake of growing hostility, violence and discrimination, could have a “devastating impact” on societies at large.
She urged the Council and concerned parties to “articulate an inclusive vision, propose a roadmap…that is not indifferent to injustice”.
While the Special Adviser role is for prevention, not adjudication, she again called for “an end to this war, to ensure the protection of civilians and to accelerate diplomatic efforts to make both possible”.
The senior UN official recounted that the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, which in 1948, “emerged out of the shadows of the Holocaust,” identifies as punishable offences, conspiracy to commit genocide, direct and public incitement to commit genocide, attempt to commit genocide and complicity in genocide.
While a “solution is possible with commitment on the part of everyone,” she reminded however, that with every continued delay “the escalation of human suffering continues”.
‘We must work harder’
As an example, “deep fakes of alleged cocaine addiction were used to cede and feed a harassment campaign against President [Volodymyr] Zelenskyy” to undermine his credibility, in a bid to tip support toward Russia, he said.
“We saw it in the lead up to the Holocaust, in Rwanda in 1994” and also in the ethnically-charged Bosnia conflict between Muslims, Serbs and Croats in the mid-1990s, she said, reminding that “ending wars require sustained actions”, including countering acrimonious rhetoric, hate speech online and offline, and rights violations that impact lives and livelihoods.
Recalling Soviet-era tactics to starve the enemy, she accused Russia of “bringing famine”, and said that some Russian troops were expressing “pride and approval” over abuses being committed.
She called on religious leaders to use their influence to support efforts to solve the ongoing conflict, not to inflame it further and reminded that advocacy of national, racial, or religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence, is prohibited under international law.
“Like air, land and sea, the internet has become a critical domain to occupy during war,” he said, describing what Ukraine has experienced thus far, as “a crystal ball of what is likely to come” in the future.
Dehumanizing Ukrainians
“Prevention focuses on the future, and on the past too, and the outpouring of hostility in response to this war means we must work harder to protect everyone,” she said.
Meanwhile, “the continued deterioration of the situation,” has prompted the Special Adviser to urge all in a position of influence to “redouble their efforts to contribute to the restoration of peace”.