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Campaigning to prevent election-related violence

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: 

  •      Push strongly for legislation outlawing party militia groups and sanctioning parties that maintain them and/or violent youth wings. If such laws are already in place, advocate publicly for their enforcement.
  •       Introduce new technology and social media for election monitoring and crisis management. Engage young people in the development and implementation of online platforms and text-messaging mechanisms to monitor elections; to convey messages about election results, possible intimidation or violence; and to inform citizens about election-related updates.
  •        Establish and/or facilitate youth-inclusive platforms for dialogue and discussions about preventative measures.
  •        Incorporate violence prevention topics in general voter/civic education programs and discussions about preventative measures.
  •      Incorporate violence prevention topics in general voter/civic education programs and develop special activities aimed at preparing parties and candidates for potential election loss. 

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: 

  •        Engage with new audiences. By using social media platforms, EMBs can successfully connect with youth who are less likely to be reached through traditional voter education programs.
  •      Directly access an existing audience of followers, who can then share the information provided by EMBs within their own respective networks in an ongoing and ever-expanding process.
  •      Increase transparency and accessibility. Social media can enhance the ability of EMBs to disseminate impartial, accurate, and timely information and respond promptly to queries and requests through both formal and more informal platforms. In addition, exchanges held on an EMB’s social media platforms — either between the EMB and its followers or between the followers themselves — are visible to a wide audience and contribute to increased accessibility to information and transparency around the electoral process.
  •    Have two-way interactions through user-generated content and communication, thereby allowing EMBs to not only share information with, but also to gather real-time information from, the electorate.
  •        Optimize costs. The use of social media is cost-effective. The money saved by using social media can be used for vital activities on the ground instead of on advertising in traditional media. 

“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.