Since yesterday, Facebook users who attempt to post stories about peaceful #EndSARS protests receive a cryptic message rejecting the attempt because “Fact-checkers say at least one photo or video in this post contains false information.”
On Instagram, users are unable to posts related to police brutality in Nigeria because “Independent fact-checkers at Check Your Fact say it’s false…”
The issue has been condemned by multiple social media users who say their freedom of speech is being violated by the social media platforms.
“Mark Zuckerberg is policing IG and Facebook. Posts relating to the #EndSARS and #LekkiMassacre are taken down and described as hate speech and fake news. Is there no freedom of speech on the Internet except on Twitter?” said @Monasizzle, a Twitter user.
The protests against police brutality perpetrated by Nigeria’s Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), have been peaceful. However, on Tuesday night, the Nigerian military opened fire on peaceful and unarmed protesters at the Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos, killing about 15 people and injuring several.
Posts describing what transpired during the #LekkiMassacre and other protests across the country have been blocked from distribution by both Facebook and Instagram.
According to Vice News, a Facebook spokesperson confirmed that the #EndSARS hashtag had been incorrectly flagged.
The Facebook spokesperson said:
“We are aware that Facebook’s automated systems were incorrectly flagging content in support of #EndSARS, and for this, we are deeply sorry. This issue has since been resolved, and we apologize for letting down our community in such a time of need.””
There have been speculations that the Nigerian government is attempting to silence social media, as they have local media because news about #EndSARS protests “embarrass individuals, organizations, government or cause disaffection, incite to panic or rift in the society at large.”
However, as the protests continue in different parts of the country, Nigerians hope that they will be allowed to post, curate, and spread authentic information on all social media platforms about police brutality and bad governance in Nigeria without bias.
Update:
In a post on Instagram, the Director of Product Management at Facebook, Ime Archibong, said, “While we’re working nonstop to resolve this issue, I wanted to say: this one is personal. I’m sorry that we let down our community in their time of need…”
Instagram has also issued a statement on its Twitter handle, apologizing for “… letting our community down in such a time of need.“
