In many countries with a history of electoral violence, international and national organizations, EMBs, CSOs, youth organizations, and peace activists have been launching offline and online campaigns to strengthen youth’s resistance to political manipulation and violence and to promote peaceful participation in elections.
Example. The 2015 presidential election in Nigeria was one of the most hotly contested on social media. The government’s National Orientation Agency initiated the #Wagepeace2015 campaign, which sought to mitigate and counter risks of electoral violence. The agency encouraged stakeholders in the private and public sectors, international organizations, community development, and civil society groups, and individual peace activists to utilize the #Wagepeace2015 platform to send out messages to the public via the #Wagepeace2015 Twitter and bulk SMS messaging as well as the broadcasting of peace messages on radio and television.[i] These messages encouraged non-violent political behavior proactive action to counter hate speeches. After voting stations closed, #NigeriaDecides was used by thousands of Nigerians to discuss the elections while awaiting final results. Both presidential candidates also used their Twitter and Facebook accounts to send messages to the population to patiently await the results and refrain from using violence.[ii]
Although EMBs, peace activists, and youth organizations are increasingly using online platforms to campaign to prevent election-related violence, traditional media actors also remain important partners of their anti-violence campaigns, in particular to reach out to citizens who are not active online. EMBs can therefore use national and local radio and television channels for broadcasting their peace education messages through public service announcement, dramas, and talk program.
Example. In Burundi, where radio is the most popular medium, Search for Common Ground created Intamenwa (Indivisibles): Mobilizing Youth for Peaceful Elections, a radio drama series exploring political manipulation and youth violence through the story of a fictional football team.[iii]
Example: In Kenya, IFES designed a social media and digital communications-driven program during the general elections of 2017 to better integrate approaches for conflict mitigation, outreach and communications programming for peace and nonviolence. Social media was complemented by two television ads. See Annex: “Taifa Letu – Our Nation” Social Media Campaign for Peace and Nonviolence.
Example: The Youth Theater for Peace (YTP) program promotes sustainable conflict prevention and a culture of peace at the community, regional, and national levels through a participatory theatre methodology called Drama for Conflict Transformation (DCT).
Suggestions for EMBs working to prevent election-related violence include:
In summary, the use of social media platforms can offer a range of advantages for EMBs. It allows them to do the following, for example:
“Social media
and communications technologies are increasingly being pioneered by young
people as an alternative means to exercise their political agency, demand
accountability, amplify their voices, foster connectivity and create new
networks. Online platforms are particularly important for those who may be
vulnerable, unable to access deliberative political processes or constrained by
restrictive institutional politics, even though such spaces may also be used for
criminal activity or to propagate hate speech. Governments and political
processes can benefit from the innovation and leadership youth demonstrate by
embracing these spaces and the transnational connectivity they offer.”
UNFPA and PBSO (Lead author Graeme Simpson), The Missing Peace: Independent Progress Study on Youth, Peace and
Security, 2018
Example: In New Zealand #ForFuturesSake campaign, launched in 2017, uses social media to encourage youth voters. “Statistics show Māori aged 18–29 have the lowest rate of enrollment than any other age group with only 55 percent of the total estimated population in this age range voting at the last election.” Social media influencer William Waiirua Cribb said, at the launch of the campaign, “social media is the way to go these days. Not many people are watching TV and it’s all Snapchat Instagram Facebook so it's a really good platform to encourage youth to vote. This is the first year of a four-year programme to raise awareness and participation of Māori in electoral processes. The programme will be monitored and the results of that will help inform future years of the programme.”[iv]
[i] Nigeria Stability and Reconciliation Programme (NSRP), "Mobilising Citizens for Peaceful Elections: A Case Study on the #Wagepeace2015 Campaign," (NSRP, 2012), www.nsrp-nigeria.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Case-Study-on-Mobilising-Citizens-for-Peaceful-Elections.pdf.
[ii] Maeve Shearlaw, "#Nigeria Decides: How Buhari’s Election Played Out on Twitter," Guardian, April 1, 2015, www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/31/ nigeriadecides-buhari-election-twitter.
[iii] Floride Ahitungiye and Ragini Menon,"Intamenwa, the Indivisibles," (Search for Common Ground, January 8, 2016), www.sfcg.org/intamenwa/.
[iv] Ani-Oriwia Adds, "#ForFuturesSake campaign uses social media to encourage youth voters," (Maori Television, June 29, 2017), http://www.maoritelevision.com/news/regional/forfuturessake-campaign-uses-social-media-encourage-youth-voters.