Cambodian government expelled 22 board members of Meta Platforms from the country

Tey Neayok

The Cambodia Government has banned 22 members of the Oversight Board to Meta Platforms from entering the Kingdom, and if they are in the country they are required to leave immediately within 48 hours, as of four o’clock on July 4.

The statement issued on July 3, 2023 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, stated that the recommendation by the Oversight Board to Meta Platforms, to temporarily suspend the official Facebook page belonging to Prime Minister Hun Sen, is political in nature.

It intends to obstruct the freedom of the press for the citizens of Cambodia and the right to receive credible news from a leader whom they support and admire, the statement said.

In the spirit of unwavering adherence to upholding the principle of sovereignty, and to prevent the interference into the internal affairs of Cambodia, the Government has decided to declare the following members of the Oversight Board to Meta Platforms, as ‘Persona Non Grata’, it said.

The 22 members are: Kenji Yoshino, Julie Owono, Pamela San Martin, Ronaldo Lemos, Michael McConnell, Nighat Dad, Katherine Chen, Andras Sajo, Emi Palmor, John Samples, Khaled Mansour, Suzanne Nossel, Tawakkol Karman, Catalina Botero-Marino, Afia Asantewaa Asare-Kyei, Nicolas Suzor, Paolo Carozza, Evelyn Aswad, Sudhir Krishnaswamy, Helle Thorning-Schmidt, Alan Rusbridger and Endy Bayuni, it said.

“The above-mentioned persons are barred from entering or remaining in the Kingdom. They are required to leave Cambodian territory within 48 hours from the issuing time of this statement, precisely on 04 July 2023 at 16:00,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation added.

The statement came after the board linked to the social media company Meta had recommended a six-month suspension of Prime Minister Hun Sen’s Facebook and Instagram accounts for an incendiary speech, he posted earlier this year threatening to use “a stick” against opposition opponents.

The decision was likely pre-empted by the Prime Minister who announced late Wednesday night that he was going to primarily use Telegram to communicate with Cambodians and stop using Facebook.

Meta’s Oversight Board ruled on June 29 that a January 8 speech which Mr Hun Sen gave in Kampong Cham province violated Facebook’s community standards by threatening violence against political opponents.

 

Prime Minister Hun Sen said that: “There are two choices, the first is to use legal action, the second is to use a stick. This means that I will gather all the CPP’s supporters to hold a demonstration and hit you. So, which one do you prefer?”.

The Oversight Board rejected Meta’s decision to keep the video on the platform for its newsworthiness, saying Mr Hun Sen’s reach on social media allowed the threat to spread more widely.

The Ministry found irregularities related to Facebook, including the existence of fake accounts, the risk of losing private data, the use and collection of personal information, the spread of fake news, the lack of accountability and transparency, and interferences into the country’s internal politics, it said in a statement.

In a Telegram voice message released on June 30, Mr. Hun Sen said he is “Not stupid enough to ban one of the most used social media platforms in Cambodia”.

“I only deleted my own account,” Mr Hun Sen said.

He reaffirmed that it was his own reasons, including the existence of fake accounts with his name that drove him to make the decision and not the intention by the Meta Oversight Board to consider a six-month suspension of his account.

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