抄録
Owing to the virtual, globalized, and decentralized nature of the architecture of the Internet, online hate speech has become rampant and even fueled a global increase in violence toward minorities. This phenomenon has been exacerbated in the COVID-19 pandemic as a human crisis unleashing a tsunami of hate across the world. In the age of pandemic, it is critical for not only governments but also multinational companies to strike a balance between regulating the hate speech and securing the rights to free expression and information that has a direct impact on people’s access to public health information and their lives. This study, referring to key human rights instruments, aims to explore how basic principles of international human rights law can provide companies with a roadmap for tackling online hate. With an analysis of some cases in Japan during COVID-19, this study showed deficiencies in platform companies’ centralized and automated approach to content moderation, limitations of the current regulatory framework and its implementation under national and municipal laws against hate speech in Japan. It calls for the companies’ investment in their content moderators from a human rights perspective to protect the rights of both the moderators and the victims of hate.
