This is a query made by the BBC Sinhala Service on the recent comments on Facebook that there is an attempt to block the social media accounts of environmentalists and activists.
Environmentalists and activists say an attempt is being made to ban their social media accounts, which are being used to speak out against the ongoing environmental destruction in Sri Lanka.
They point out that there is an organized effort to falsely report their posts alleging that they belong to the categories of ‘Hate Speech’, or ‘Bullying and Harassment’.
They claim that their accounts are being blocked based on certain words in the posts, regardless of the context in which they are reported, and that this violates their right to freedom of expression.
Lawyer Supun Jayaweera is one of the environmentalists whose Facebook accounts have been blocked.
“Also, the posts of several non-environmentalists who talk about environmental issues in Sri Lanka have been falsely reported. “Sometimes they pick up on comments we made two or three years ago and report them,” they told the BBC Sinhala Service.
In response to a query from the BBC, a Facebook spokesperson said that the company would take immediate action to restrict accounts in the event of a breach of its Community Standards.
Facebook has confirmed that environmentalist Supun Jayaweera’s Facebook account has been temporarily blocked as there have been reports of ‘hate speech’, ‘bullying and harassment’, which are part of Facebook’s standards.
Meanwhile, environmentalist Supun Jayaweera says that he has deactivated his account for fear that it will be completely blocked due to continuous reports.
“I had about 3,000 friends on my profile. In addition, there were about 9,000 other followers. Among them were a large number of people who were particularly interested in environmental issues. There were people who followed my profile saying that there was some credibility in what I was saying. There were a lot of people who shared them. However, I was censored using loop holes in the Facebook. ” He said.
Attorney-at-Law Supun Jayaweera states that he has never personally harassed or bullied anyone through his Facebook account.
“We have never bullied or harassed a person. I remember one time in one of my posts which stated “Do not attack Muslims,” had been reported as ‘Violence’. This type of situation completely deprives us of the right to express our views. ”
“This post was published in a profile of a friend of mine and we reported it shortly after. Then we get a reply that this post will not harm the ‘Community Standards’.”
Therefore, Supun Jayaweera questions whether it is not fair to think that there is an attempt to personally target and suppress environmentalists like him who speak out against environmental destruction.
He also noted that his ‘Diary of Evolution’ Facebook page, which included only educational matters, had “disappeared” without any notice being given.
“I maintained that page to educate people about natural science. Because there are a lot of myths in Sri Lanka regarding natural science. It is due to a lack of knowledge. I publish posts here as a collection of ecology, archaeology and evolution. For about three years now, I have been publishing it in simple language that anyone in Sri Lanka can understand.”
“Actually, in the ‘global context’, it’s a science communication page. There are almost no such pages in Sri Lanka. It had more than fifty thousand followers, a page with a large reach. There was nothing political about it. Now that page is also missing,”
“No warnings, no notifications, no emails. The page just disappeared. ” Supun Jayaweera further stated.
Activists who speak out against not only environmental destruction but also human rights abuses, corruption and fraud are among those whose Facebook accounts have been blocked.
Achala Seneviratne, a lawyer who advocates for disappearances and human rights, is among them.
Last Saturday, she mentioned on her Facebook page that her Facebook account had been blocked for three days.
However, Attorney-at-Law Achala Seneviratne further stated that it is “strange” that none of the accounts have been blocked despite reports of obscene, death threats and defamatory statements on their photographs.
“Truthfulness itself can qualify to be restrained or ‘restricted’. Thank you again.”
Meanwhile, Ven. Karimaditte Gnanarama Thera, an active monk who expresses his views and opinions on social media, has on 2nd April stated that his Facebook account has been blocked.
Many who have commented on it have noted that they too have had similar experiences.
Facebook uses third-party groups to check and verify what is posted on its social network.
The experience of a number of environmentalists and activists whose accounts have been blocked raises suspicions that some of these groups ‘Independent Fact Checkers’, regardless of the context of their notes, translate some of their words directly into English and report them directly to Facebook explained several environmentalists and social activists to the BBC Sinhala Service.
They also say that it is doubtful whether some of them are doing so due to a bias (bias) towards the present government.
“Words that are used in common usage such as idiots, stupid and donkeys are identified as words bullying and harassment on Facebook. But when the same words are used in the fake profiles maintained by the supporters of the present government, they will not be blocked,” an active member of the social media network, who did not want to be named, told the BBC Sinhala Service.
“Even if we report, they will not be blocked. We are getting a message from Facebook that there has been no violation of Community Standards. ”
“I was blocked for 30 days for using the word ‘idiot’. That is not to say that I used it directly to insult anyone in the conversation.”
In March 2018, several social networking sites, including Facebook, were blocked in Sri Lanka to prevent the spread of hate speech and violence against the Muslim community on social media.
She also said that her comments condemning the attacks on the Muslim community posted some time ago have been reported several years later as ‘hate speech’ and “racism”,
“Several posts against racism have been reported. In the past, when racists threw eggs on girls visiting ‘Nolimit'(a dress shop owned by Muslims – the branch at Panadura was set on fire by communalists during the communal clashes), the post I wrote against it was reported and became ‘Hide’. There are several such instances.”
The BBC asked her if the deleted posts contained words that violated Facebook’s Community Standards, to which she responded, “I may have reacted against racists with strong language. But given the context, I think it’s not something that should be removed. Because Facebook is a medium for us to express our views, she said.
“Throwing eggs on girls who go to a Muslim shop to buy clothes is a gross act of racism and sexism. If that cannot be expressed as ‘idiocy’- then maybe there is no freedom of speech,” She said.
She points out that in addition to being harassed for criticizing the existing regime or holding alternative views on social media, there are also challenges posed by being a woman.
“I feel that in our society it is more shameful for a woman to tell a story than for a man to tell it. ”How can a woman tell such a story?” There is such an attitude in the society. It means, “I don’t care if it’s a man, how can a woman talk like this?”
She believes there is some “weight” to the opinions and criticisms of dissenting citizens on social media, adding that this would be an opportunity to let Facebook know that an attempt is being made to “suppress” her voice.
The BBC has asked Facebook about claims made by environmentalists that third-party groups used by Facebook to check and verify posts on its social networking sites are suspected of being under the influence of the government or having such biases.
Facebook says it uses two globally certified third-party agencies to ensure the accuracy of the data in Sri Lanka.
“As part of our global Fact checking program, we have been working with ‘AFP Sri Lanka’ and ‘Fact Crescendo Sri Lanka’ since 2019 to rate and review the accuracy of what is posted on Facebook. . They are among more than eighty global partners certified and independently evaluated by the International Fact-Checking Network. Our partners, who guarantee the accuracy of facts, can only investigate and evaluate the accuracy of a story. They are not able to remove what is posted on Facebook,” a Facebook spokesman said in response.
However, without the links to the accounts and pages in question, Facebook says it will not be able to provide further information on specific allegations made by environmentalists.
