Moldova's information security is constantly threatened, and media manipulations are frequent. But state authorities have not identified adequate solutions and mechanisms to protect their citizens and national interests against hybrid threats. This was the generic public debate held at the Institute for Development and Social Initiatives (IDIS) Viitorul on 10.26.2017, titled "Informational Space Amid Hybrid Threats".
IDIS Viitorul Director Igor Munteanu said that democracies need to know how to defend themselves through resilience mechanisms, this is the key condition that the big and small states have to answer. The RM needs to endow itself with a firm policy of protecting citizens and the national space of viruses para tagging for the weaknesses of transition, and the confusion of some segments of political elites. In his opinion, manipulation in public space is a form of abuse of power, which should surely awaken the intervention of responsible state agencies, irrespective of the origins of this hybrid, internal or external viruses. We notice the appearance of dozens of clone newsletters, trolls, which are taught to multiply false information, corrupt trust in true, professional media, serving in this way obscure interest groups. Especially lately, politicians are increasingly appealing to such guerrilla campaigns, promoting hate speech and misinterpretation of professional journalism standards, as long as the current legislation does not even outline an institutional framework to respond to such a situation.
Eugen Carpov, deputy chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on National Security, Defense, and Public Order, said that the Republic of Moldova should have a pragmatic and correct approach to the national interest. Hybrid threats are used in the international environment as a hybrid war concept, and the media is the backbone of this war. Military units, terrorist organizations, political parties, media, NGOs, large economic agents, secret services, religious and ethnic groups, diplomatic and humanitarian instruments are used. The MP exemplified the informational hybrid war in the Republic of Moldova through the Transnistrian region, which with interpersonal, officers and special services undertook subversive actions in the Republic of Moldova. "We have weak institutions, including those who have to fight these actions, especially in the information space. We have an apathetic population that is not interested in the processes in the country".
Vlad Ţurcanu, a free-lancer, media expert, illustrated in his presentation the following statements: The Moldovan authorities are willing to limit the proportions of Russian propaganda only sporadically when the governing parties are affected by political interests. In such cases, ACS exercises vertical pressures on the Audiovisual Coordination Council or on other public institutions with attributions in the field that it causes them to act on. In general, however, rather, civil society and international partners show concern for the hybrid war. It is a distinct element that distinguishes RM from states in similar situations who find their own resources to counter the attempts of some Russian environments to distort reality and undermine the European vector of those states.
Propaganda cannot be tolerated if we want to save the social organism from information infections, said Corina Cepoi, director of Internews. However, propaganda cannot be replaced by another type of propaganda, established by more restrictive legislation, but above all by positive examples, as the Baltic states do. "We can not treat tuberculosis cancer." In turn, Virginia Nica, Moldnova Portal News Coordinator, reviewed the media space in the Republic of Moldova, which is facing new communication technologies, illustrating the differences and challenges posed by new technologies. On behalf of the Association of Independent Press (API), Lilia Zaharia, a reporter, has illustrated several concrete cases of falsification of information space through clone sites, falsified data used to distort some monitoring reports and press campaigns of the type stop fake.md. Reports regularly reported by the API point to the rise in the false news and even a new news distortion industry, created as an appendage to political campaigns, and which, unfortunately, does not cease even after the end of the official election campaign.
Today's debate has revealed a wide predisposition for solidarity on the subject of informational space security in the RM against foreign hybrid threats, but also against misinformation, hate campaigns, domestic propaganda, led by political mercenary and 'praetorian guards' (troll). The speakers had clear and well-structured messages through objective assessments and responses to hybrid information sources threats. The participants showed an undisguised interest of some public authorities, but also the absence of others. In conclusion, the speakers referred to the subject of the existing relationship between democracy and the right of the citizen to be informed, to be able to express opinions, without fear of being punished or abused by influential authorities or groups. It is the task of active civil society to reanimate the public space, the 'agora', the space that generates social capital and citizens aware of their rights and freedoms. The Republic of Moldova needs legislation to deal with the pre-existing threats, as well as the elaboration and adoption of the media development strategy of the Republic of Moldova in line with international practices and the revision of the current Audiovisual Code.
A synthesis of the main conclusions and recommendations of the 10.26.2017 debate will be made available to those interested over the next week.
For further details, please contact the press officer, Victor URSU, at the following address: ursu.victoor@gmail.com or at 069017396.
