In 2012, there was a conflict between Buddhists and Muslims in Myanmar’s Arakan state in which thousands of people were killed. Later in 2017, simultaneous attacks on border posts in Arakan led to mass violence by the Myanmar army and Buddhist nationalists.
After the events, many Rohingya citizens had to leave their countries and seek refuge in different countries. Rohingya refugees living in the UK and America have sued Facebook, accusing it of allowing years of hateful and false information to spread.
Hate speech lawsuit filed against Facebook
Rohingya refugees accuse Facebook of allowing hate speech against them to spread. With this accusation, many Rohingya refugees living in the United Kingdom and America filed a lawsuit for damages worth 150 billion dollars to the giant social media company. In a letter sent to Facebook by the law firm representing refugees filing lawsuits in the United Kingdom, it was stated that Facebook algorithms “reinforce hate speech against the Rohingya people”. Some lawyers in the US state of San Francisco have also filed a complaint with Facebook with similar claims. In the $150 billion lawsuit filed by refugees, Facebook has yet to respond to the allegations.
Facebook, which has more than 20 million users in Myanmar, stated in 2018 that it did not do enough to prevent violence and hate speech against Rohingya people. After Facebook’s confession, the United Nations accused the social media giant of being influential in the spread of cyberhate.
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