[caption id="attachment_13401" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Voters queuing at a polling station in Kenya during the 2007 elections. Photo courtesy of User DEMOSH via Flickr Commons.[/caption]

Political tensions are high in Kenya with just a few days to the general elections. The European Union has warned that the country could once again plunge into violence, and the Kenya Elections Observation Group (ELOG) expressed dissatisfaction with the preparedness of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC). Opinion polls suggest that the election will be a two-horse race between the incumbent, President Uhuru Kenyatta, and the opposition leader, Raila Odinga. In attempts to woo voters, both candidates are targeting the youth vote — the largest voting bloc in Kenya. The candidates are very active on new media platforms popularly used by the youth: Facebook, Whatsapp, YouTube, and Twitter.

Today, social media has revolutionized politics, as political aspirants communicate with their followers, or potential supporters, through new platforms and can receive instant feedback on their messages. These new platforms pose challenges because it is difficult to control what is posted online, and this has led to the dominance of 'fake news,' especially during this election period, as candidates attempt to influence voting patterns.

A recent study by Portland and Geopoll, a leading mobile surveying platform in Africa, reveals that 90% of Kenyans have received false information in relation to the upcoming elections, and that 49% of Kenyans prefer receiving election news through social media. Social groups, are using social media to misinterpret and spread incorrect information. According to the study, traditional media are still the most trusted sources of information, with television ranking in the first place, followed by radio and newspapers.

The Prevalence of False Information

During the primary nominations for the political parties in April, there was a fake print, purportedly from one of the top leading newspapers in Kenya, Daily Nation, with a headline stating that Mr. Paul Otuoma, a candidate vying for the Busia governorship, had defected to another political party. Additionally, fake posters brandished Mr. Otuoma as having decamped to the rival party. The move was aimed at making his supporters vote for his main opponent, who distanced himself from allegations of spreading false news. Mr. Otuoma lost in the primaries, and while it is still not clear whether he lost as a result of the fake news, he is instead running as an independent candidate in the upcoming elections. The Daily Nation condemned the use of its brand to spread political propaganda.

An attack advertisement campaign against Mr. Odinga called "The Real Raila" is still available online and warns Kenyans of the detrimental consequences that will result if Odinga wins the Presidency.  The advert alleges that Odinga's win may plunge Kenya into violence and dictatorship, with inter-tribal violence and high incidences of terrorist activities. Unfortunately, no officials have condemned the video nor ordered for its removal from the web.

The mainstream media, which is mostly trusted by the public, has also been implicated in spreading false news. A few months ago, The Star suggested to the Kenyan public that President Kenyatta had hired Cambridge Analytica, a data firm that was behind the Trump Administration and Brexit victories, to help in its campaigns however, Cambridge Analytica refuted such media reports, claiming they were full of errors.

Reputable international media houses have also been targeted by fake news; a fake video, purportedly from BBC and CNN has gone viral on social media, reporting fake polls predicting that Mr. Kenyatta will emerge victorious in the upcoming elections. Both media houses have dismissed any affiliation with the fake video and false reports, urging their viewers to look to their official websites for confirmation that they are in fact the sources. In a recent editorial, The Star, distanced itself from a fake tweet that was posted during the presidential debate that alleged that one of the debate organizers is an employee of one of the political parties in an attempt to undermine the credibility of the debate organizers.

The Threat of False Information Online

Hate speech and the spread of false information online were two major contributors to Kenya's 2007 post-election violence, which resulted in more than 1,000 deaths and rendered at least 300,000 individuals homeless.

Both contributors have activated ethnic divisions in Kenya, and as evidenced in past election results, voting patterns are usually tribal. Currently, supporters of Jubilee and the National Super Alliance (NASA) Coalition are waging online wars against each other. The online community is quick to spread false information and lacks careful monitoring. This mobilization of false information may lead to political in-fighting.

The Kenyan media has performed relatively well as compared to during the 2007 elections, when it was accused of fueling violence. Members of the media have acted professionally, remained truthful in their reporting, and only announced the official results to the public during the party primaries. In 2007, according to the Krieglar and Waki Report, media houses were competing to announce the results, leading to each TV station having a unique tally, placing different candidates in the lead of the hotly contested elections. During this election cycle, the government has issued a stern warning to all media houses that they may risk losing their licenses and face prosecution should they release results not officially announced by the IEBC.

Internet Shutdown during Elections

Increasing occurrences of hate speech and rates of fake news have forced the government to warn of possible internet shutdowns as a measure to counteract risks to the country's security. The IEBC has raised concerns in the event of an internet shutdown, as it would interfere with the transmission of electronic data and the web portal that will be used to relay the election results. An internet shutdown would deny Kenyan citizens' their right to freedom of expression. However, this freedom does not allow for any amount of defamation or utterances that may lead to violence. On July 1, 2016, the United Nations passed a resolution by consensus, condemning intentional internet shutdowns as a violation of Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, arguing that rights to free expression apply online as well as offline. Ethiopia, Congo, Chad, Uganda and Cameroon are some of the countries that have shut down the internet during elections. This move, while gaining popularity in Africa, does not guarantee a free and fair election, nor does it guarantee that there will be no incidences of violence.

Way Forward

The National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC), formed to promote peaceful coexistence among different communities in Kenya, has flagged 176 social media accounts, still under investigation, for hate speech. Whatsapp group administrators face arrest for spreading rumors, hate speech, or misinformation in their groups. These types of warnings are frequently handed out ahead of elections, although the prosecutions of such kind of cases occur very slowly. The public justice system should more robustly support prosecution of these offenses. In the past, the NCIC has blamed the Judiciary for delaying prosecutions, hence hampering its work in regulating hate speech and false information.

The mainstream media should stick to its role as a watchdog, working to ensure that elections are credible.

Kenyans trust the content delivered from mainstream media, however, there is still a need for better training of journalists, as instances of hate speech still exist on vernacular radio stations. Such instances were contributing factors in the 2007 post-election violence.

Due to the rise of citizen journalism, the mainstream media should educate the public on how to report responsibly and how to identify fake news content. Media houses should also work to ensure that they are not engaged in spreading false news, and that they solely provide credible information to the public. For instance, Facebook has already launched an anti-fake news campaign that is targeting Kenyans, and the Communications Authority of Kenya has urged all media houses in the country to report the names of false news spreading websites in order to identify the sources giving the public false information.

Information is power; however, false information only leads to confusion. Furthermore, it can lead to violence if it's not monitored. There is a need for international organizations to channel their resources towards educating citizens on how to identify fake news — a growing global problem. As Kenyan citizens head to the polls they need to trust information posted by mainstream media houses, verify information, and preach peace instead of spreading offensive messages against those on the other side of the political divide in order to ensure a peaceful election and society.

Sharon Anyango Odhiambo was a Southern Voices Network for Peacebuilding Scholar at the Wilson Center from February to April 2017. She is a Communication and Outreach Officer at the African Technology Policy Studies Network (ATPS), a member organization of the Southern Voices Network for Peacebuilding.