The UN special rapporteur on minority issues, Fernand de Varennes, welcomed the recent news that Facebook’s Oversight Board has accepted its first six cases appealing against decisions to remove content. The Oversight Board, compared by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to the social media platform’s own Supreme Court, is an independent body that reviews Facebook moderation decisions. De Varennes also said Facebook’s Community Standards should be brought into line with the understanding of “hate speech” in the recent UN Strategy and Plan of Action on Hate Speech. He also said Facebook’s omission of protection for linguistic minorities from hate speech is troubling and contrary to international human rights law. The three fora have made more than 100 recommendations for tackling online hate speech against minorities.

Source: Dhaka Tribune December 23, 2020 09:11 UTC