The coronavirus, vector of anti-migrant propaganda

Audio 03:48

By: Sophie Malibeaux

Since Turkey threatens to let migrant refugees into Europe pass through Europe, the fear of a migration crisis similar to that of 2015 in Europe has aroused. On social networks, everything is good to justify the rejection of newcomers. With a lot of information, the ultra-nationalists stir up fears, including those linked to the Covid-19.

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In 2015, we remember, the “ terrorist threat ” was used as a pretext to block the Balkan route for migrants fleeing the war in Syria. Five years later, some do not hesitate to use the psychosis of the coronavirus to justify the blocking of migrants at the borders.

Hungary has this month closed transit camps for asylum seekers on the Serbian border, citing the dangers of coronavirus. In France, too, the extreme right brandishes the “closing of borders” as a remedy for the epidemic, as does the Italian Salvini, who calls for the borders to be shielded from migrants from Africa. Logic of the absurd, knowing that the first cases identified in Africa are people who came from Europe and not the reverse.

Infox who dehumanize migrants

In general, identities, on networks, avoid showing women and children, and prefer to relay the image of young men presented as dangerous.

With the exception of a video that instrumentalizes the presence of children, accompanied by this comment: “ Migrants have no limits , watch those who deliberately make their children cry and then bring them in front of the cameras. They are ready to do anything to enter Europe! They must be prevented! "

Spurious and intentional interpretation of images

What do we see in these images? People panicking in a sparse forest, running around. Columns of smoke are visible in the woods, and in the foreground adults rub a child, pat him on the back and approach him with a smoldering brazier… nothing nevertheless allows the scene to be interpreted as the member does on twitter of Identity Generation which relays the video.

In fact, the fact checkers of the Liberation newspaper found the Turkish photographer behind these images. Elif Kürleyen tells a whole other story than that put forward on twitter: the migrants have just been the target of tear gas and by approaching the child for a moment from the smoke from the wood fire, the man who the door tries to reduce the burning sensation in the eyes caused by the gases. On Generation Identity's tweeter thread, refugees are treated as savages, scum, etc… the woman who moans is qualified as an actress, the calls for hatred multiply with impunity.

A video taken out of context and legal proceedings

Another example of infox widespread in order to feed the anti-migrant feeling, it is a video which made hundreds of thousands of likes and shares in Europe, where we see young college students vandalizing their classroom and violently attack a teacher. The video has been circulating since last June with an ironic comment: " this scene testifies to the virtues of immigration ".

Again, this is misinformation. The scene was actually filmed in a school in São Paulo, Brazil and broadcast on June 1 on Brazilian TV TV Globo. These violent adolescents have nothing to do with the young migrants who arrived in Europe, as the comments of those who relay the video in Europe for anti-migrant propaganda claim.

In Spain the public prosecutor's office has decided to initiate proceedings against those who circulate it, accompanied by false comments. It is a first, business to follow.

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• Social media
• Infox
• International Migration
• Hungary
• France
• Spain