A connected world isn't always a better world

About 60 per cent of the country’s 51 million people now have mobile phones. The once-isolated nation is now firmly connected to the world, with over 1 million Facebook users and chat apps like Viber and LINE growing in popularity.

Much of the Internet chat is now focused on Myanmar’s historic election next month. Several online news reports on campaigning have attracted over half a million “likes” in the past few days.

The Internet has made the world a smaller place for people in Myanmar, just as it has done for those elsewhere. 

But is a smaller world a better world?

Judging from what users choose to “like” on Facebook, people are inclined to focus on interests closer to home. That would explain why there are only 1.8 million “likes” for the page of the United Nations – whose goals encompass billions of people in over 100 member-countries – compared to over 3 million for the BBC Burmese page.

While Myanmar’s citizens concentrate on their election, people in Europe are occupied with the refugee crisis. Many have been dismayed at the deaths of Syrian refugees on the sea journey to Greece in search of a better life on the continent. But what is a dangerous exodus for some is a moneymaking opportunity for others. Channel 3 reported a booming trade in lifejackets in the Turkish town where Syrian refugees gear up for the crossing. Casting their humanity aside, traffickers charge the refugees US$1,200 ($600 per child) for the potentially deadly trip. Some have paid up only to discover they have been cheated.

Yet despite the suffering of millions who have fled Syria and countries nearby, a global effort to address the root problems of the exodus is still missing. Russia’s launch of an air campaign against the country’s terrorists has dismayed the US-led international coalition and may have placed an end to the civil war even further out of sight.   

Meanwhile, though a suicide bombing in Turkey left over 90 dead and 500 wounded at the weekend, the headlines in Thailand were dominated by a mob attack on Thalang Police Station in Phuket. The country learned it was fuelled by anger at the deaths of two young men killed when their motorbike crashed while being chased by police. 

In truth, the incident merited front-page treatment, with a police station and nine vehicles left severely damaged. And this is not the first time that citizens have taken out their grievances on the authorities. Still fresh in the memory are sieges that closed Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports for days, causing over Bt100 billion in losses and damage. The Appeal Court this year ordered the protest leaders to pay Bt600 million, but the case is not done yet. Showcased for a global audience via the Internet, such events are bound to impact Thailand’s reputation for rule of law.

Yet the Web’s power to bring people together also has a brighter side. A recent example in Thailand came when netizens bombarded authorities with complaints against celebrities who posted photos of themselves holding alcoholic drinks on social media. Two of the miscreants promptly apologised and denied they had been paid by the drinks makers. In our interconnected world, celebrities have a prominent and growing status as role models. Perhaps we should target them with more campaigns, this time pressuring them to stop using plastic bags, or help plant more trees. 

Last week, the film “Steve Jobs” reached cinemas. 

“Jobs changed the way we communicate,” noted Michael Fassbender, who stars in the biopic. 

Jobs was not alone in this regard. Initiatives that have made the world smaller also came from Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg, among others.

Zuckerberg’s Facebook recently reached the eye-popping milestone of one billion users in a single day.

Zuckerberg hailed the achievement in a Facebook post: “A more open and connected world is a better world. It brings stronger relationships with those you love, a stronger economy with more opportunities, and a stronger society that reflects all of our values.”

 There’s no doubt that the Internet has strengthened relationships and economies. But I doubt that this connected world is tantamount to a better world. Divergent and polarised values will see to that.

The suicide bombing attack in Turkey prompted a desperate plea from one of those left bereaved: “Why can’t we, the world, live happily? I want [it to be so] we can hold hands and be happy.”

Only when that wish comes true can we say that our connected world is an improved world.