Many believe that the internet is one of the greatest ways to express democracy among individuals, a reflection of liberty and equality within its global community known as “netizens”. But in today’s context of democracy, did the internet really help us achieve prosperity? Or it just adds up to the abusive and unjust treatment of the powerless?
Technology helped humanity to connect. The internet is one of the greatest things that we benefit from. It bridges connections from almost any part of the globe right at the comfort of your homes.
The internet also provides us vast access to different information that exists all around the globe. With a few clicks and searches here and there, you can easily gain the information you need. It also paved the way for unheard voices of people from across the globe to be recognized and be heard.
Voices of the minority are usually using the medium of social media to express their interests and advocacy to the people that they wish to target.
The abusive aspect of technology is greatly felt through Social media. The growing number of individuals gaining access to social media makes the dissemination of information rapid. A few of this Information consists of fake and malicious content.
Use technology to reinvent democracy
Social media is the best example of a breeding ground of destructive contents that can easily target an individual, a group of people or even a whole country. It bears witness to cyberbullying, identity theft, fake news, and manipulative information. But is it really technology the problem or the people behind it manipulating it?
We should learn to assert ourselves and fight for our voice to achieve true democracy that we wanted to have. It is us failing to maximize technology to exercise the democratic rights that make us fail in achieving our own footprints in this modern nation-state.
We are urged to reinvent technology to have our voices in society be heard. That is the true essence of democracy, the ability of simple individuals to be heard and not be manipulated by the hierarchy in a government state.
Make use of technology to take part in global issues that can help those who are neglected and unheard. This is our world, this is our time, let us not leave our future on several elected officials to decide on our behalf all the time. Let the voice of the people be heard. Give back the power back to the people.
But what if the young generation forget history and how they became a nation? Or when there’s a or loving one’s own culture and language?
This is the true essence of democracy. Let us use technology to reinvent democracy in shaping a better future and not hold back and let our voices be unheard once again.
