Nairobi, 12 January, 2024 / 8:50 pm (ACI Africa).
Catholic activists under their umbrella organization, CitizenGO Africa, have criticized the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) new Guidelines for the Governance of Digital Platforms saying they are a “sneaky way” of censoring what can be talked about.
Introduced in November 2023, the guidelines outline duties, responsibilities, and roles for states, media, civil societies, and intergovernmental organizations, among other stakeholders, to enable an environment where freedoms of information and expression are at the core of governance processes.
According to CitizenGo Africa, UNESCO wants the public to believe that the guidelines are “just another well-meaning global plan to protect you” yet they are “a direct attack on free speech, targeting those of us who challenge the globalists’ views on gender, abortion, vaccinations, family values, and Christianity.”
“The UNESCO report guidelines for the Governance of Digital Platforms indicates a move towards increased censorship and control over digital conversations. This means the suppression of views and information that are contrary to the narratives approved by UNESCO or its collaborating governments and corporations,” they say in the Monday, January 8 petition.
UNESCO wants to “decide on the information exchange taking place and dictate what we can or can’t say and think online,” CitizenGo officials say, adding that the UN entity’s guidelines “aim to identify and limit what it considers ‘disinformation’ and ‘hate speech’.”
