Phnom Penh, Cambodia — A semi-independent review board recommended on Thursday that Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen’s Facebook and Instagram accounts be suspended for six months for using language that incites violence.
The oversight board set up by Facebook’s parent company Meta issued its non-binding ruling in a 26-page report. It would overturn a decision by Facebook moderators to allow Premier Hun Sen’s Facebook page to display a video of a January speech in which he denounced opposition politicians who accused his ruling party of stealing votes.
“There are only two options. One is to use legal means and the other is to use the stick,” the prime minister said in the video. “Either you will face legal action in the court, or I will gather people from the (Cambodian) People’s Party for a demonstration and beat you up.” His comments were spoken on Facebook Live and placed online as a video.
The board said it stood by its recommendation to suspend their accounts because of “Hun Sen’s history of committing human rights violations and intimidation of political opponents, as well as his strategic use of social media to amplify such threats”. has reached.
Meta is expected to respond within 60 days.
Hun Sen – a dedicated and active user of Facebook – said a day earlier that he would no longer upload to the popular platform and would instead rely on the Telegram app to spread his message.
A cunning and sometimes ruthless politician, Hun Sen was Cambodia’s top leader for 38 years. He said he’s switching platforms because Telegram is more effective and makes it easier to communicate when he’s traveling to countries that ban Facebook use — such as China, his government’s top international ally.
“At last, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen is being called out for using social media to incite violence against his opponents, and apparently he is,” Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director for Human Rights Watch, said in an emailed statement Thursday. But they don’t like it at all.” ,
Facebook dared to hold her accountable to its Community Standards, Robertson said.
Hun Sen’s ruling party spokesman Sok Ayson said he could not comment in detail as he was not aware of Facebook’s rules and regulations.
But he said Hun Sen faced a double standard because foreign-based media that broadcast the attacks and what he described as misinformation about the prime minister and his family were allowed to operate unimpeded. In contrast, Hun Sen may face suspension.
Two levels of Facebook moderators declined to recommend action against Hun Sen, first noting that he did not violate Meta’s Community Standards guidelines against violence and incitement.
They prohibit “threats that may result in death” and “threats that cause serious injury”, including “statements of intent to commit violence”.
On appeal, a senior group of arbitrators ruled that despite the provocative nature of the comments, Hun Sen’s status as a national leader made his comments newsworthy and therefore not subject to punishment.
Three external users appealed to the board to review the moderator’s decisions, as did Meta.
Social media critics have repeatedly raised concerns that political leaders are using social media in a way that can inflame and incite violence in countries such as India and Myanmar. Due to such concerns former US President Donald Trump was temporarily suspended from Facebook.
