Pros and cons of the Sri Lankan government that blocked SNS in response to the suicide bomber

by Pxhere

In the suicide bombings that occurred simultaneously on April 21, 2019 at multiple locations in the largest city of Sri Lanka, including Colombo, more than 300 deaths, including Japanese, have been confirmed. In response to this incident, the government of Sri Lanka cut off social media. In Sri Lanka, you can not use YouTube, Facebook, its affiliated Instagram or WhatsApp after the incident.

Social media shut down in Sri Lanka in bid to stem misinformation | World news | The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/apr/21/social-media-shut-in-sri-lanka-in-bid-to-stem-misinformation

Facebook ban: Sri Lanka shows why blocking social media is a 'blunt instrument'-CNN
https://edition.cnn.com/2019/04/23/tech/facebook-ban-sri-lanka-intl/index.html

On April 21st, 2019, a Christian Easter Day , the suicide bombings targeted mainly Christian churches and luxury hotels used by foreigners. The Sri Lankan government sees it as a crime of Islamic extremists in the country, and 24 people of Sri Lankan nationality were arrested by 22nd, and ISIL issued a statement of crime on April 23, 2019, two days after the incident occurred. You are

Following this incident, the government of Sri Lanka has cut off social media in the country immediately after the incident, and Harindra Dassanayake, presidential adviser to Sri Lanka, said, 'Temporarily to prevent further spread of violence caused by hate speech and fake news. and of the social media block ' announcement it was. In addition, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Lanil Wicklamasha also called for 'do not spread unconfirmed news and speculation' on Twitter. Twitter is not used so much in Sri Lanka, so it is not the target of social media blocking by the government this time.

I call upon Sri Lankans during this tragic time to remain united and strong. Please avoid propagating reports and speculations. The government is taking immediate steps to contain thisisation.

— Ranil Wickremesinghe (@RW_UNP) April 21, 2019

Cut-off of social media by the government of Sri Lanka this is not the first, Central Province, the capital of Sri Lanka in March 2018 candy and collision between the Muslim and Buddhist, even similar measures when it is developed into a riot had been taken . The response of the Internet and news media over the Sri Lankan government's response has been divided into pros and cons. British news media The Guardian has taken up the voice of an anonymous Sri Lankan citizen who says that 'blockade of social media is a very good idea,' it is a view that if it does not block social media, retaliation against Muslims is promoted Indicated.

Also, Ivan Seagull, executive director of the non-profit organization Global Voices by bloggers and citizen journalists, said in his Twitter account that 'we used to think blocking social media was illegal censorship. But now we believe it is an essential duty to protect ourselves from threats. '

Now you think of it as an essential duty of care, to protect ours from threat. #Facebook your house is not in order. #EasterSundayAttacks L @ A few years ago we'd view the block of social media sites after an attack as outrageous censorship; globalvoices @groundviews

— Ivan Sigal (@ivonotes) April 21, 2019

The background of such reaction is that Facebook's reaction to the gunshot incident that occurred in New Zealand in March 2019 has been slow, and there is a growing distrust of social media and the way social media are It is seen that there is a growing debate over it.

'Facebook is a morbid lie where morals have collapsed,' the Privacy Commission criticizes hard

On the other hand, public agencies are also calling for repulsion against media regulation. CNN Business accused the Sri Lankan government of blocking social media as merely a spinal reflex. Also, 'most of the voices that compliment the blockade of social media are from outside Sri Lanka. Many Sri Lankan citizens have been forced out of their means of keeping in touch with their families and relying on government coverage for access to information. ', And regulating the SNS does not mean that it solves the problem.