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KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian government summoned Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) on Monday (Aug 5) over the company’s removal of several posts on its social media sites by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim expressing condolences and mourning for the late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.
It also took issue with Malaysian state television’s suspension of live broadcasts of a pro-Palestinian rally in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday evening on Facebook.
The Malaysian prime minister’s office said in a statement on Monday that it had demanded an apology from the tech company and hoped to take several steps to correct the situation, adding that it considered Meta’s actions “discriminatory, unjust and a blatant suppression of free speech.”
“It is also seen as an insult to the legitimate struggle of the Palestinian people for justice and human rights,” the statement said.
“We also emphasise that the removal of these posts has far-reaching implications for the Malaysian people and the global community, who are well aware of the suffering of the Palestinian people and the atrocities committed by the Israeli Zionist regime, which are recorded in history.”
The statement stressed that Meta’s “unilateral decision” to censor content on Mr Anwar’s account raised questions about the transparency of the company’s content moderation policies.
Communications Minister Fahmy Fadzil and Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) chairman Mohd Salim Fatih Din were present at the meeting, although it was not revealed who was representing Meta.
In since-deleted social media posts, Anwar had paid tribute to the late Haniyeh, calling him “a dear friend and a courageous advocate of the people.”
The posts, which have reportedly been deleted, were captioned “dangerous individuals and organizations.”
Haniyeh, who had been based in Doha, Qatar, since 2019, was killed on July 31 in the Iranian capital, Tehran.
He attended Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s Swearing-in Ceremony One day earlier.
In May this year, Facebook also deleted several posts related to media reports of Anwar and Haniyeh meeting in Qatar, but the posts were later restored.
On Monday, the Malaysian Prime Minister’s Office also expressed displeasure over the suspension of the Facebook live broadcast of a Palestinian liberation rally held the previous evening through the Berita RTM account.
The Malaysian government organised a rally at the Axiata Arena in Kuala Lumpur, attended by thousands, in support of the Palestinian cause. It was broadcast live on Berita RTM, a Malaysian free-to-air news channel owned and operated by public broadcaster Radio Televisyen Malaysia.
“As a result, the Prime Minister’s Office has requested that Meta take a number of actions, including a detailed explanation of its decision to rectify the matter and a public apology from the company. As promised during the meeting, Meta will be issuing a press statement shortly,” the statement read.
As of this writing, Meta has not made any statement.
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