The
spread of the vocabulary containing insults and swearing by the political
actors participating in the election campaign in the population is very
disturbing.
In
particular, the rhetoric of political forces and their leaders using such
vocabulary is rapidly spreading among each side’s supporters and opponents.
Another
disturbing development is the preparation of very condemnable videos containing
insults and hate against political opponents.
The
impression is that a competition has been announced all over the country, and
points increase depending on who insults and curses the most.
As it
turns out, the pre-election campaign is aimed at providing public scenes of
mutual accusations, insults and swearing, and the public discourse is filled
only with the agenda of the debate over power, full of insults and swearing.
But
the political forces that use such rhetoric simply ignore the fact that after
all this, people on social networks and even outside social networks start
insulting, cursing and mocking those who have different opinions about the
elections, using the same insults and curses.
These
political actors do not take into account that these vicious phenomena, in
turn, keep the atmosphere tense, deepen polarization and intolerance in the
long run. These political actors do not consider that rhetoric insulting
dignity is provocative, and can lead to violence in real life.
Therefore,
even the metaphorical meanings of each word or phrase must be taken into
account. This is especially true of the vicious phenomena associated with
violence.
It is
necessary to stop, in fact to exclude entirely the short-sighted development
and the open encouragement of an agenda of mutual insult and swearing in the
public sphere.
Political
forces, and especially public figures, must urge everyone to respect every
human right, especially dignity and freedom of expression. We should contribute
to the restoration of solidarity and guarantee of mutual respect in the country
by our own example.
And
finally, it is obvious that if the agenda of swearing and insults continues to
develop instead of voicing people's real problems or discussing solutions,
people will not be able to get a clear idea of who to vote for in order to
solve their vital problems and then will not be able to exercise oversight over
the political force who has formed the public authority.
Mr.
Arman Tatoyan
Human
Rights Defender of Armenia
Հայերեն
