This article was originally published by Radio Free Asia and is reprinted with permission.
Cambodia said it has declared the 22 people on Meta’s oversight board “persona non grata,” barring them from entering the country, after the regulatory group recommended suspending Prime Minister Hun Sen’s Facebook account.
If any were in the country – and that was doubtful – they had 48 hours to leave, the statement from the foreign ministry said Tuesday.
Hun Sen’s Facebook account, which the hardline leader has used to rally political support, went blank after the June 29 announcement from Meta Oversight Board, which had ruled that a video in which he threatened violence against his political opponents had violated Facebook’s guidelines against prohibiting incitement.
It was the first time that the board had instructed Meta – Facebook’s new corporate name – to shut down an account run by a government leader.
Hun Sen has since told his social media followers he was switching to Telegram and Tik Tok, and urged them to follow his posts there.
Hun Sen, in power since 1985, has regularly taken to social media to deliver lengthy tirades against his opponents and threaten them if they defy him.
In an announcement Tuesday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs claimed Meta’s decision to suspend Hun Sen’s accounts was “political in nature,” and it was issued with the intent 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.”
“Unethical revenge”
The ministry’s move to expel the board clearly shows that Cambodia’s government lacks responsibilities and ethics, Hul Sao, a Cambodian resident and Facebook user, told RFA’s Khmer Service.
“This is unethical. This is revenge against Facebook,” he said.
Meta’s decision might be an excuse for Hun Sen to try to shut down Facebook in Cambodia, where it is widely used, and thus deprive people of a means to disseminate information and news to each other, said Som Someth, a farmer in the northeastern province of Banteay Meanchey.
“This is a big deal for our country,” he said. “If Facebook is shut down, free speech on social media will be eliminated, and there will be even more restrictions.”
Law student Ly Chandaravuth told RFA that the politically motivated decision was Cambodia’s move to keep board members out of the country, not Meta’s decision.
He called the ministry’s announcement “laughable” and said that Hun Sen should not mix his personal issues with the national interest.
