The supervisory board of Meta Corporation (which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp) on Monday reversed the company’s decision to remove any posts on the Facebook platform that contained the slogan “Death to Khamenei”, saying it did not violate the rule against violent threats. .
The board, which is funded by the company but operates independently, said in its decision that the phrase is often used to mean “down with Khamenei” in reference to Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who has been waging a violent crackdown on protests that have been taking place in his country for months.
The Council urged the company to develop better ways to filter messages in this context, consistent with its content policy, and to clearly define the circumstances under which verbal threats against government leaders are permitted.
Protests have been taking place in Iran since mid-September following the death of a young woman, Mahsa Amini (22), after being detained by the vice police for wearing “inappropriate clothing.”
The protests, which included demonstrators from all walks of life demanding the overthrow of the ruling theocracy, represented one of the biggest challenges facing the government of the Islamic Republic after the 1979 revolution.
The riots posed a dilemma that has become a recurring dilemma for Mita, who has repeatedly wavered in her approach to violent political statements posted on her platforms.
The company bans any method that incites “serious violence” but is careful not to go too far by limiting use to plausible threats, leading to uncertainty about when and how the rule will be enforced.
For example, following Russia’s military operation in Ukraine last year, Meta introduced a temporary exception for Russian President Vladimir Putin to allow users in the region to express their anger at the war. A few days later, the company withdrew the refusal.
