Across Asia hate speech based on fake news has led to an increase of violent incidents as disinformation divides communities during periods of political and communal tensions. With rising internet penetration and use of mobile devices, abusive and threatening remarks both in speech and writing are going viral over social media. Often such content expresses intense prejudice against individuals or particular groups, on the basis of disability, ethnicity, gender, nationality, political ideology, race, religion or sexual orientation which can rise up to a frenzy leading to violent outcomes. Governments have enacted laws to preserve public order as well as to protect human dignity. They have also sponsored and assembled inter-faith dialogues and embarked on social cohesion efforts. Other stakeholders such the UN, international organisations, civil society and faith-based groups are also doing their part to combat hate speech. In the search for solutions to these challenges, there is also a need for an evidence-based discussion to critically examine the phenomenon of hate speech and its impact on democracy, the rule of law and human rights. This conference seeks to address the issue of hate speech from an evidence-based and a solution grounded approach while upholding freedom of expression.





Themes


The key issues that will be examined are as follows:





Blasphemy, hate speech, “harmony” (national, social, religious) laws and bills


International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD)


Human rights mechanisms (UN [UPR/Special Procedures], AICHR, NHRIs)


Non-legal interfaith dialogues and social cohesion or social harmony initiatives


Perspectives from religion, race, ethnicity and nationalities


Political and nationality-based discrimination and hate


Social protection of gender and LGBTIQ stakeholders


Role of media, social media and technology


Impact on democracy, freedom of expression, human rights and the rule of law


Any other relevant or related themes





Objectives


The conference aims to achieve the following objectives:





Convene interested individuals and organisations researching hate speech;


Exchange information and trends around legislation to prevent hate speech;


Examine non-legal measures to promote social cohesion and harmony;


Evaluate hate speech’s impact on democracy, freedom of expression, human rights and the rule of law


Conference Structure


The conference will consist of short remarks, keynote speeches and plenary and breakout sessions made of thematic panels and country-specific discussions.





Conference Participants





Registration is open to all presenters and participants from academic institutions, businesses, national and regional civil society organisations, international NGOs, political parties and intergovernmental organisations to facilitate knowledge sharing and networking. Due to the stability of internet connection available, Asia Centre is not able to accommodate online presentations and participation.





Conference Publications


Following the international conference, Asia Centre will undertake following publishing efforts:





Conference Proceedings


Publish a set of peer-reviewed Conference Proceedings.





Book Project


Asia Centre will invite selected authors and presenters (10-12) to participate in book proposal to Palgrave Macmillan (International Edition) and Gerakbudaya (Regional Edition).





Special Issue Journal


Asia Centre will also assemble a small number of papers (5-6) for submission as a special issue to a journal drawn from its pool of partners’ publication.





Conference Fee





This is a self-funded conference, hence a flat fee of USD$300 that will be charged to all keynote, paper and poster presenters, participants and drop-in visitors. This will go towards covering the cost of the venue, equipment and logistics, coffee breaks on all days, certificates for participants, conference communications and staff.





Submission Guidelines





Paper Presentations and Speeches


Researchers and practitioners wishing to present papers or share their experiences are invited to submit a title, an abstract in English of 300-350 words along with a biographical paragraph of 100 words to research@asiacentre.co.th. For those submitting papers, full papers should be 5000 words.





Poster presentations


Limited space is available for 4 to 5 poster presentations. Your presentation may be submitted in word / pdf format to the Asia Centre for consideration. A 60×80 cm poster will be printed and displayed during the conference. Full conference fees apply





Key Dates





Accepting abstracts now (deadline 15 Dec 2019)


Payment due following acceptance of paper


Full papers (deadline 15 March 2020)





Conference Partnership





Asia Centre welcome organisations and individuals to be conference partners by organising a panel, sponsoring a keynote speaker the opportunity to network and forge linkages with academia, businesses and civil society in the region and promote their organisations and activities.





Partner Benefits





Logo on all publicity materials online and at conference venue


Social media and mailing list promotion through Asia Centre’s networks


Display and also distribute promotional materials from partner organisation to participants


Develop expertise on the issues covered by the conference themes





Partner Requirements





Purchase minimum 4 tickets (USD 300 x 4 = USD1,200)


Market the conference within their networks


Partners can also buy additional conference tickets





Additional Options





Sponsor participants by buying conference tickets


Sponsor a keynote speaker by providing a financial grant to the conference.


Provide corporate sponsorship (in-kind and/or financial grants) and be featured on promotional materials

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