Human rights in the Facebook era

As a community of writers and activists, Global Voices contributors have faced censorship, harassment and direct threats because of our activism on Facebook since the early days of the platform. We’ve been writing about these experiences for more than a decade.

We also know that for Facebook, and for anyone trying to understand how tech platforms and policies interact with free speech, privacy and other civil and political rights, past experience is instructive.

How does ethnic hate speech on Facebook affect public life in Afghanistan?

How are police in Bangladesh using Facebook to track citizens’ activities?

What was it like when Facebook was still accessible in China?

When did Russians first start noticing “Kremlin bots”?

The stories below answer these and many more questions. They remind us that while headlines might focus on just a handful of experiences in certain countries, there are stories like this from nearly every country around the world. And they illustrate how many of the issues dominating western news cycles in 2018 — government trolls, “fake news” and endemic harassment — are nothing new.

Here is a selection of our strongest coverage of free speech, censorship and human rights on the world’s largest social network, since 2008.

CAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA

Kyrgyz Security Services Declare War on President’s Facebook Critics (Jauary 2017)

Is Social Media Helping to Perpetuate Violence in Afghanistan? (June 2016)

In Afghanistan, Social Media Gives Rise to Hate Speech (May 2016)

Facebook Lands More People in Trouble in Kazakhstan (April 2016)

How Afghanistan's Politics of Ethnicity and Honour Play Out on Facebook (March 2016)

Kabul Taxi is Blocked on Facebook. Long Live Kabul Taxi! (October 2015)

Religious Hatred on Facebook in Tajikistan (March 2013)

Tajik Official Blocks Facebook and Summons its CEO (November 2012)

Uzbekistan: ‘National’ Social Network Not Quite a Facebook Clone (July 2012)

Uzbekistan: Playing politics on Facebook (December 2011)

Azerbaijan: As protests loom, Facebook is monitored (March 2011)

CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE

Macedonian Citizen Fined 400 Euro For Insulting Turkish President Erdoğan on Facebook (August 2017)

‘The Long Arm of the Kremlin’: Kazakh Man Goes to Prison for Insulting Vladimir Putin on Facebook (December 2016)

Trump Propagandists From Macedonia Shy Away From His Victory (November 2016)

Bulgarian ‘Green’ Activist Faces Lawsuit Over Facebook Post (May 2016)

Facebook Finally Suspends ‘Pegida Macedonia’ Anti-Muslim Page (January 2016)

Hungarian Woman Fined for Facebook Post About State Spending (November 2015)

Facebook Responds to ‘Stop Political Blocking’ Campaign — But is it Enough? (June 2015)

Navalny Protest Rally Facebook Event Page Blocked in Russia (December 2014)

Facebook Weighs in on Ukraine-Russia Takedown Dispute (October 2014)

Ukrainian Ministry of Information Thanks Facebook Bots for Their Hard Work (September 2014)

Anton Nossik on the Coming End of Facebook, Twitter, and Google in Russia (September 2014)

Ukraine Asks Facebook's Zuckerberg to Discipline Kremlin Bots (August 2014)

A Russian Gulag for American Social Networks’ Data? (April 2014)

Facebook Predicts the Outcome of Macedonian Presidential Elections, Again? (April 2014)

Facebook Status Criticizing Crimea Occupation Gets Journalist Fired (March 2014)

Facebook Teams Up with Russia's Top Search Engine (January 2014)

Russia: Facebook Bots Massively Vote for Putin (October 2011)

Macedonia: Concerns Over Anti-Protest Collusion of Facebook and Police (June 2011)

Serbia: Police Hunt Facebook Misogynists (November 2010)

Macedonia: Facebook Removes Ministry of the Interior's Personal Profile (April 2009)

Serbia: Facebook Group of Serbian Nationalists (December 2008)