Misinformation concerning infringement of human rights

It is in the interest of individuals and groups seeking political advantage to arouse public interest, international media attention, and especially the concern of those monitoring human rights abuses, by falsifying or exaggerating claims of infringement of human rights. Under the social conditions in which such claims are made it is difficult to determine what really occurred given the effort of those so motivated to make such claims and the effort of the authorities to deny their validity, whether or not they are true.

Governments represented in the United Nations Commission on Human Rights regularly make statements indicating that the evidence produced for human rights infringements is false or simply an exaggeration of minor incidents.