Ukraine’s lessons: Fighting disinformation and defending democracy
Debate ahead of the International Democracy Day
Wednesday, 13 September, 16h00-20h00
at the Heinrich-Böll-Foundation (HBS), Schumannstr. 8, 10117 Berlin
Ukrainian citizen groups are one of the main drivers of democratic change in Ukraine. In a context where parts of the state are corrupt or weak, citizens have stepped in to ensure transparency and progress of reforms, increase public awareness and sensitivity to disinformation. The Ukrainian civil groups proved they are fast and flexible to respond to the disruption of a deep crisis. But is their approach sustainable? Can they maintain the momentum?Citizen groups work to build a transparent state and a democratic society while informational aggression is one of the main battlefields of the conflict with Russia. How do civil groups deal with this challenge? How do they respond to measures like the President’s recent ban of popular Russia websites and social networks? What are the main lessons learned and can they guide other countries in fighting disinformation, particularly during election period? Can Ukraine’s experience inspire EU citizens in a context where democracy has become under pressure?
Programme
15h30-16h00 Registration and coffee/tea
16h00-16h20 Opening remarks
Rostyslav Ogryzko, Minister-Counsellor of the Ukrainian Embassy in Germany
Ellen Ueberschär, President Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung
Michael Meyer-Resende, DRI Executive Director
16h20-18h00 Panel I: Old lies, new approach –fighting fake news in Ukraine
Yevhen Fedchenko, Co-founder of StopFake.org and Head of Journalism School at the National University of Kyiv Mohyla Academy
Dmytro Zolotukhin, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Information Policy of Ukraine
Tetiana Popova, Senior Strategy Communication Expert, NGO "Information Security"
18h15-19h45 Panel II: Civil society in Ukraine – its success story and future
Andrey Kurkov, Ukraine novelist and independent thinker
Susann Worschech, Research associate at the European University Viadrina
Oleg Rybachuk, Founder of Centre UA, New Citizen Public Campaign and the Civil Movement “Chesno”
Andreas Prothmann, Head of the Ukraine Task Force, Federal Foreign Office
Moderator: Matthew Karnitschnig, POLITICO’s chief Europe correspondent
Language: English with simultaneous translation into German
Cocktail reception and screening of Tim White’s documentary “Nothing but Lies: Fighting Fake News” (25 min, English)
We hope you can join us! To confirm your participation please RSVP by Monday 11 September