More than a dozen activists protested the popular social media site Facebook today for censoring pro-Kurdish content.
Organised by the group ‘Stop War on Kurds’ in front of Facebook headquarters in London, the demonstration lasted several hours with demonstrators calling for an end to “Facebook’s blocking of pro-Kurdish content and activists.”
A press release read by the organisers said that they had “come to Facebook HQ in London today to remove your office view as you have violated the Kurdish Community’s Standards on freedom of expression, justice and human rights.
Your punishment will be a brief obstruction of the impressive view you must have from the 6-8 floors of Facebook HQ, 10 Brock St with the beautiful colors of the Kurdish people, red, yellow and green.”
Protestors then lit red, yellow, green torches shouting the slogan, “Facebook stop your war on Kurds.”
The targeting of pro-Kurdish rights activists has intensified recently with many Facebook users being forced to take down photos and posts that violate Facebook’s community standards. Users have shared screen shots of content that has been removed by FB, including flags representing Kurdish (red, yellow, green) colours, photos of murdered Kurdish activists in Paris, flags and images of People’s Protection Units (YPG) militants fighting Islamic State, PKK flags and images of Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan. Some users have had their accounts confiscated indefinitely while others have been banned for up to 30 days.
Speaking to KQ via telephone a protestor said:
“For many years now, as is widely reported, it is obvious to all that Facebook is working as an arm of the Turkish state suppressing the Kurdish people’s right to free expression so Facebook can access the internet market of Turkey. This despite a very serious human rights situation existing for the Kurdish people in Turkey. A situation that remains unreported in the media as Turkey seeks to misinform and misrepresent the Kurds’ voice.”
Activists have accused the Turkish state of being behind Facebook’s targeting of Kurds and pro-Kurdish posts. Claims that the social media giant bans posts due to agreements and special guidelines made with Turkish authorities surfaced after a former worker leaked alleged Facebook guidelines. Facebook has not rejected the authenticity of the guidelines that includes prohibition of ‘PKK support and depiction’ and ‘Abdullah ‘Apo’ Ocalan content.
The protestor also said:
“Facebook is aiding the Turkish state to criminalise the Kurds as they face daily racist repression, jail and destruction of their cities by the Turkish military. As Kurdish MPs face jail on ‘trumped up’ charges, every day Kurdish people are having content on their Facebook pages, which the Turkish state finds objectionable, removed. This has happened to Kurdish political parties, Kurdish News Agencies, local Kurdish community media and Kurdish and pro Kurdish activists as well as private individuals, not only in Turkey but around the world.
We would like it to stop. This violates all interpretations of human decency and freedom of expression and exposes Facebook’s hypocrisy in saying it is committed to the free expression on the internet for all. Stop censoring Kurds and allow free expression.”
Source: Kurdish Question