EU Statement – UN General Assembly: Informal High-level Meeting on International Day for Countering Hate Speech

I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the EU and its Member States.

On this important occasion, the EU expresses its support to the United Nations Strategy and Plan of Action on Hate Speech and remains fully committed to cooperating with the United Nations to step up a coordinated response against hate speech at the national and international levels.

The European Union is founded on values such as respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights. All forms of hatred and intolerance are incompatible with these values.

We are strongly opposed to all forms of discrimination including on grounds of sex, race, ethnic or social origin, religion or belief, political or any other opinion, disability, age, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

Racist and xenophobic hate crimes and hate speech are prohibited under EU law.

Mr President,

Recent global crises, like the COVID-19 pandemic or the war in Ukraine have been characterised by an increase in hate speech and intolerance. Examples include hatred targeting persons in vulnerable and marginalised situations, manifestations of antisemitism and racist and xenophobic behaviours, in particular against persons belonging to minorities, migrants and refugees.

Not only does hatred affect the individuals directly targeted, it can have a chilling effect on sectors of the population, silencing those that wish to stand up for the right of persons belonging to minorities or of most vulnerable groups. It therefore represents a threat to the right to freedom of expression and to a thriving public debate.

The right to freedom of opinion and expression is an inalienable right of each person, and is one of the essential pillars of our democratic societies. This freedom extends to information and ideas that may offend, shock or disturb others including criticism of religion, ideology, beliefs and institutions, and all forms of satire.

The right to freedom of expression is not absolute. For example, States are obliged to prevent propaganda for war and incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence.

Every institution at the national and international level has a responsibility for preventing hate speech. To do this, institutions should actively work together to promote open debates and free societies where everyone is able to participate in political life without fear of being silenced. The values of pluralism, tolerance, diversity and non-discrimination must always prevail.

Violence against persons belonging to minorities occurs in many forms, and often starts with words. Nowadays we can observe how hate speech has become a powerful factor contributing to conflicts and wars of aggression. A brutal example of this is the national and ethnic hatred, used as a tool of war during Russia’s unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine.

Women and girls, persons in vulnerable and marginalised situations, including LGBTI persons, persons with disabilities, and Indigenous Peoples suffer disproportionately from discrimination, stigmatization and violence. The EU expresses its concern about the rise in hateful rhetoric targeting these persons and groups of persons worldwide, fuelled by disinformation and false narratives.

It is also imperative to promote a safe and enabling environment for civil society actors and all Human Rights Defenders across the world, both online and offline.

Mr President,

In the EU while preserving the right to freedom of opinion and expression, many forms of incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence are prohibited by law while hate speech is opposed in all its forms.

In this context, the enormous opportunities brought by the digital age should be praised and exploited in full. However, the internet has its dangers and it has been a tremendous accelerator in disseminating hatred and intolerance. The online intermediaries must therefore take responsibility for the illegal hate speech that they may host and that is not protected by the right to freedom of expression. What is illegal offline must be illegal online.

In order to specifically address the spread of hate speech on social media, in May 2016 the EU set up a voluntary ‘Code of Conduct’ with the major platforms - Facebook, Microsoft, Google (YouTube) and Twitter – to counter illegal hate speech online.  The aim of the Code of Conduct is to ensure that online platforms swiftly review and, if necessary, remove alleged illegal hate speech notified to them and it has produced impressive results so far. Moreover, since 2016, the Code has expanded and attracted new companies, such as Instagram, Snapchat and Dailymotion, Jeuxvideo.com, TikTok, LinkedIn, Viber and Twitch.

In November 2022, with the entry into force of the Digital Services Act, the EU has made an additional significant step to combat illegal content online, including hate speech. The DSA represents an unprecedented set of enforceable rules and provides for a comprehensive approach to tackling all forms of illegal content online and responding to systemic risks, while protecting fundamental rights and freedoms.

The Digital Services Act introduces transparency obligations for online platforms as regards their content moderation activities, terms and conditions, algorithms, recommender systems used and online advertising, with particularly increased transparency and accountability measures for very large online platforms. These new rules will also require very large online platforms to assess and mitigate systemic risks, including as concerns the spread of illegal hate speech and negative effects for fundamental rights. In order to do so effectively, the DSA encourages the interplay with voluntary, co-regulatory tools, such as Codes of conducts. Therefore, the 2016 Code of conduct on countering illegal hate speech online will continue to play a crucial role to support the implementation of the new rules in the EU.

In today’s deeply interconnected world, we need to ensure our own interconnectedness when it comes to tackling global problems, including hate speech. Only by working together in multi-stakeholder settings involving state institutions, civil society organisations, experts and online intermediaries can we ensure an effective and human rights based response to hatred and intolerance.

I thank you