Society

Reach Out launches campaign to fight hate speech, xenophobia.

by Shing Timothy
11 Oct 2022 13:32
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Participants in group photo after the launch

Reach Out Cameroon and the National Commission for the Promotion of Bilingualism and Multiculturalism have launched a region-wide campaign in the South West region, to combat hate speech and xenophobia.

It was launched during a ceremony Friday October 7 in Buea.

The campaign comes at a time incidents of hate speech and xenophobia, have witnessed an upward spiral in the region since the Anglophone crisis started in 2016.

Esther Omam, Executive Director of Reach Out, said: “We want to talk about hate speech and xenophobia because we have seen a rise in violence and criminality in our various communities as a result of these vices. People are abusing others and using inappropriate words towards others”.

She said because of the consequences of hate speech and xenophobia, everybody must join the fight against the phenomena.

“…We have seen schools being the centre of rising violence lately as a result of students and teachers indulging in hate speech. We have heard situations where teachers and students have been stabbed because of hate speech. Also, we are in a war situation that keeps increasing because of hate speech and xenophobia. That is why together with the National Commission for the Promotion of Bilingualism and Multiculturalism, we are engaging in a campaign to see how we can work together in our various communities to curb hate speeches against one another,” she explained.

Speaking to the press, Nkengafack Eucharia, Communication Officer and Project Manager of Reach Out, said the project aims at rallying all members of the community to combat hate speech and xenophobia.

“Hate speech has been existing from time immemorial, manifesting in different forms from online to offline nowadays. So, we are engaging with stakeholders and media practitioners because we believe it is time for collective action for everyone to take up the responsibility as members of the community to contribute to building peace in our communities by fighting against hate speech and xenophobia. This is by not hurting people because of where they come from or bringing down their self-esteem to satisfy our personal interest,” Nkengafack said.

Speaking to the press after the launch, Esther Omam said hate speech and xenophobia are signs of a decaying society. According to her, they remain very prevalent on social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp.

The campaign therefore is to make sure that a generation of young people filled with hate will grow in the country.

“…we are carrying out this campaign so that we do not breed a generation that will not be recognisable in the future; a generation which will not stand the test of time, or have the patience and culture of tolerance towards one another,” Omam said.