Amazon succumbs to government pressure and removes LGBTQ-related products from search results
The New York Times reported on June 29, 2022 that Amazon has removed
Amazon Restricts LGBTQ Products in United Arab Emirates --The New York Times
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/29/business/amazon-lgbtq-uae-emirates.html
According to a document obtained by The New York Times, the United Arab Emirates government has pressured Amazon to impose penalties for not restricting access to LGBTQ-related products. As a result, Amazon has restricted search results on its website since June 27th.
Although the details of the penalties have not been clarified, homosexuality is a crime in the United Arab Emirates, and the penalties include the death penalty, life imprisonment, whipping, fines, and deportation.
There are more than 150 search words restricted by Amazon, including 'lgbtq', 'pride' (often combined with LGBT-related terms such as gay pride or LGBT pride ), and 'closed gay' ( publicizing sexual orientation ). Some words have a relatively broad meaning, such as ' not gay '), but it seems that they aimed at specific products and product categories such as 'transgender flag', 'queer brooch', 'chest binder for lesbians', and 'lgbtq iphone case'. There was also something that could be done. When The New York Times searched for these words, they all returned 'no results'.
I actually tried the following. When I searched for 'queer brooch' on Amazon.com in the United States, I saw accessories in the shape of a rainbow.
On the other hand, when I typed the same search word on Amazon.ae in the United Arab Emirates, nothing was displayed.
Since the search word is in English, I searched for 'brooch' in consideration of the possibility that it would not be caught in the search results, and the search results were displayed without any problems.
Also, 'My Lesbian Experience With Loneliness,' an English version of
Amazon | My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness | Kabi, Nagata | Manga
'We continue to work on diversity, equity and inclusion as a company, and the rights of LGBTQ + people must be protected,' Amazon spokeswoman Nicole Pampe said in a statement. However, because Amazon's services are located all over the world, we must comply with the laws and regulations of each country. ' I explained that I excluded related words. The United Arab Emirates embassy in Washington, DC did not respond to requests for comment.
As a spokeswoman explains, Amazon, which operates services around the world, often faces pressure from local governments. Reuters reported in 2021 that under pressure from the Chinese government, Amazon removed all user comments on Xi Jinping's book. Amazon has also announced that it will end Kindle services in China by June 2023 and withdraw from the Chinese market, as the company said, 'Kindle withdrawal is not due to government pressure but business. The above reason '.
Amazon Kindle withdraws from Chinese market-GIGAZINE
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