Digital Rights and Freedom of Religion and Belief
In the context of Iraq, Lebanon and Palestine
“Musawat” (meaning equality in Arabic) is a project developed by PAX and its partners in Iraq, Lebanon and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) that aims to contribute to Freedom of Religion and Belief (FoRB) and reverse the trend of fragmentation and mistrust by generating an alternative discourse fostering social cohesion and breaking through the lines of divisions of different ethic and religious communities. The "Musawat" Project is supported by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and aims to engage young women and men to address discrimination on the basis of religion and beliefs occurring within the social, legal and political spheres as well as on social media.
This online conference, which is part of the "Musawat" project, aims to explore the dimension of digital rights, online discrimination on the basis of religion and freedom of expression on the web in Iraq, Lebanon and Palestine. In the MENA region, social media has proven to be a powerful tool for social movements, allowing for greater activism and public engagement on online civic spaces. On the other hand, digital technologies are also being exploited to silence, surveil and control civil society as well as to spread hate speech against ethnic and religious groups. This is further threatening freedom of religion and belief especially during the Covid-19 reality that we are currently living in, which is forcing civic space to move online because of numerous health restrictions.
The aim of hosting this conference is to contribute to a safe online civic space by offering a platform for dialogue on digital rights, hate speech and freedom of religion and belief between (international and regional) topic experts, academics, activists, NGOs, journalists and other relevant stakeholders to exchange the latest evidence-based insights and practices in the field around this topic.
The conference is hosted in English. Professional English-Arabic and Arabic-English translation will be available.
You can register by clicking the button 'Register Here!' If you are able to attend only a few sessions, you are welcome to register as well!
Musawat Partner Organisations
Musawat Partner Organisations
PAXOrganizer of Digital Rights and Freedom of Religion and Belief