Facebook shut down till emergency is lifted By Namini Wijedasa Social media giant says it will not allow hate speech or incitement to violence; ready to respond to situation View(s): View(s):

The temporary blockade of access to the social media site Facebook could remain in place till the State of Emergency lapses, authoritative sources said yesterday.

The Government had initially conveyed to Facebook that the suspension was in place for 72 hours, the sources said. However, it has gone on for longer. Presidential Secretary Austin Fernando, who is also chairman of the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC), told the Sunday Times that he could not say when the blockade would be lifted and that it would depend on the situation.

Yesterday, a spokesman for the social media site based in India told the Sunday Times that they were “responding to the situation in Sri Lanka and are in contact with the Government and non-Governmental organisations to support efforts to identify and remove” hate speech and incitement to violence.

“The safety of our community is critical to us,” the spokesman said, in response to questions sent via email. “We have clear rules against hate speech or incitement to violence and work hard to keep it off our platform.”

But Facebook also said it was concerned “with the way access to the internet is being restricted and depriving people of important connections and expression. We hope that access will be restored soon”.

The New York Times quoted a spokesman from President Maithripala Sirisena’s office as saying that the Sri Lankan Government raised more than 100 items with Facebook. Harendra B Dassanayake, Director Research and International Media at President’s Office, could not immediately divulge to the Sunday Times what these items were but he said they comprised certain pages and profiles on Facebook, including sites administered by Mahason Balakaya and Asura Sena.

“A number of Facebook profiles and pages were reported as instigating violence and spreading hate speech and, in some cases, using the Facebook platform to organise crimes in real time,” Mr Dassanayake said. For instance, one man–who is now in custody–posted a video on YouTube of him walking around Kandy, urging people to gather around mosques as Muslims were plotting to attack Buddhist temples.

He called on them to destroy all the mosques if even a single temple was attacked. The clip was circulated via social media.

Hatred and incitement to violence was also spread via messaging apps like Whatsapp and Viber, he said. “There was a WhatsApp group called ‘Muslim Media’. It circulated voice clips with step-by-step instructions on how to manufacture petrol bombs, how to mix caustic soda, battery acid and flour to make an instant explosion,” Mr Dassanayake said.

Meanwhile, during a meeting President Maithripala Sirisena hosted with the diplomatic community this week, the US Ambassador asked when the social media blockade would end. The President replied that it would be lifted once the situation cleared. But the sources said it could go on till the State of Emergency was lifted. Access to messaging apps is likely to be granted earlier.

It became clear that a considerable amount of misinformation, spreading of racial hatred and incitement was taking place using social media platforms including, in particular, Facebook, and communication networks such as Viber and WhatsApp, a senior legal source said.

“Therefore, using Emergency Regulations that were promulgated on March 6, the Ministry of Defence requested the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC) to take necessary steps to cause a temporary blockade of access to those sites and systems,” he explained. The TRC requested digital data service providers to carry out the blockade and close down the relevant ports through which access was being obtained by users.”

“The blockade will be lifted soon and, in any event, will lapse no sooner Emergency is lifted,” he said. The State of Emergency is valid for a maximum of 14 days after which it must be approved by Parliament.

The authorities felt that, with the suspension of access, “spreading of misinformation and incitement stopped” and that it “definitely had a positive impact on de-escalation of violence”.

“I think, empirically, it can be shown that barring access did help in bringing the situation under control,” the legal source said.

Some internet users started using proxy sites–virtual private networks (VPN)–to access social media. “That VPN applications provide a bypass is correct,” he accepted. “However, I am advised that even with VPN accessibility, access to the blocked sites have come down to about 10 percent of the previous load.

The Facebook spokesman said the company would remove content that violated its community standards when reported to it. “We carefully review each report and may consider things such as a person’s physical location in determining whether a threat is credible,” he explained.

“We are concerned with the way access to the internet is being restricted and depriving people of important connections, and we hope that access will be restored soon,” he added, providing a link to the negative economic impact of the internet shutdown. He also pointed to third party voices, such as the Committee to Protect Journalists Asia, that have publicly criticised the ban.

“That it did cause some degree of restriction to peaceful communication and expression of freedom of mind is correct,” the legal source contended. “However, on a balance, I am firmly of the view that the blockade was reasonable and justified, and certainly lawful.”