President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali said persons who misuse social media to spread misinformation, particularly during times of national tragedy, should face the full force of the law.
He made the remarks in response to a question by the media last Tuesday, where he said the only effective counter is fact-based analysis, separating fact from falsehood and relying on credible, trusted sources.
President Ali pointed to the circulation of doctored images and synthetic videos during the MV Barima tragedy as an example of the problem, describing the content shared as “unthinkable”.
He said many Guyanese wrongly believe social media carries no rules, and that this perception must change.
“I believe it is critically important that people utilise the legal system now to bring sanity to this whole thing,” the president added.
The president also called on citizens to apply an ethical and moral standard to what they post online. He noted that the United Kingdom has far-reaching social media legislation, and that the Caribbean region is examining the issue collectively.
Guyana, he said too is, “looking at how we can amend our laws to address the very concerns that you will have raised.”
Earlier this month, President Ali revealed that he has instructed the Attorney General’s Chambers to review penalties for artificial intelligence (AI)-generated content that spreads misinformation and false narratives.
He had also indicated that government will roll out a public education campaign to help the public identify manipulated content and understand the harm it can cause.