Field and river

20th International Conference of Ethiopian Studies (ICES20)
Mekelle University, Ethiopia

"Regional and Global Ethiopia - Interconnections and Identities"
1-5 October, 2018

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SOCIAL MEDIA AS AN ALTERNATIVE SPACE FOR FAITH: INTER AND INTRA-RELIGIOUS POLEMICS AMONG ETHIOPIAN DIASPORA [Abstract ID: 1301-01]

MOHAMMED Jemal Ahmed, Izmir Katip Celebi University, Izmir Turkey, PhD student

With about billion users, more topics are being discussed and addressed on social media platforms today. Religion is certainly one of the themes. From time to time, the amount of online based social media has increased greatly, and the forms of internet usage have diversified seemingly without end. Social media apps such as Facebook, YouTube, Whatsapp, Twitter and blogs are unfortunately used as a platform for misinformation, stereotyping and even recruitment by violent extremists. Currently, these social media polemics have become great challenges of coexistence and religious tolerance in many countries. Ethiopia is also one of the victims of this phenomenon. Disparic communities of Ethiopians who resides in Europe, USA and Middle East have been playing central roles in eroding the existing religions tolerance and accommodations in Ethiopia. These diaspora have easy access to free Wi-Fi internet and mobile technologies. They also have better awareness of how to use social media. Nowadays, there are hundreds of Facebook and Whatsapp groups who have been engaging in violent religious dialogues. These violent dialogues both occur among people of the same faith and between those of two different faiths. Therefore, the main objective of this paper is to assess the impact of the Web and mobile technology-based inter and intra-religious polemics of Ethiopian diaspora on the country’s religious tolerance and coexistence, and to suggest some possible solutions to overcome these challenges by legal frames. This paper has deployed cutting-edge, internet-based research methods and reasonable tests of validity and reliability.