Philippines accuses Facebook of censoring pro-government content

MANILA, Sept 29 (Reuters) - The Philippines accused Facebook
on Tuesday of censoring pro-government content which it said was
tantamount to curtailing freedom of speech and called for new
measures to regulate the social media giant to "level the
playing field".
In the Southeast Asian country, President Rodrigo Duterte
has been bolstered by establishing a powerful support base on
social media platforms like Facebook, a factor that was
instrumental in his election victory in 2016.
But Facebook last week dismantled a network of accounts that
originated from China and the Philippines for engaging in
"coordinated inauthentic behaviour", including one that Manila
says it supports for its anti-communism stance.
The takedown drew the ire of Duterte who warned Facebook on
Monday night that it should explain what its purpose is in his
country if it wants to continue to operate. Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque said Duterte would not
shut down Facebook, but he wants to understand how it regulates
content in the Philippines where 65% percent of its 107 million
people are users.
Platforms like Facebook have become political battlegrounds
in the Philippines, but the Duterte administration has denied
allegations that it has allowed the abuse and manipulation of
social media by its supporters to harass or discredit opponents.
Roque also questioned Facebook's partnership with local
fact-checkers Rappler and Vera Files, online news organizations
that he said were critical of the Duterte government.
"We need new policies to level the playing field on
Facebook," Roque said, adding Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg
himself has called for regulation of online content.
Facebook and Rappler did not immediately respond to a
request for comment, while Vera Files declined to comment.
Facebook has been under fire in recent years for its lax
approach to fake news reports, state-backed disinformation
campaigns and violent content spread on its services, prompting
calls for new regulations around the world.
Following such criticism, Zuckerberg had said the company
would prioritize "trustworthy" news in its feed by identifying
high-quality outlets.