The Russian Government yesterday disclosed that it has concluded plans to open a criminal case against Meta for ‘calling for the murder’ of Russians, insisting that the parent company of Facebook and Instagram had relaxed rules on violent messages aimed at Russia’s army and leaders.
Russia’s Investigative Committee, which is saddled with the responsibility of investigating major crimes, disclosed that it was launching an investigation ‘due to illegal calls for the murder of Russian nationals by employees of the American company Meta.’
Russia’s General Prosecutor’s Office has also requested that the internet giant be branded ‘extremist’ while calling on Instagram to be blocked in the country for those actions.
Africa Daily News, New York reports that this announcement was coming over two weeks after Russian President Vladimir Putin sent troops into Ukraine, with Russia seeking to ban any criticism of the military campaign.
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The General Prosecutor’s Office said ‘materials were being distributed on Instagram that contained calls for committing violent acts against the citizens of Russia, including military personnel.’
It said it had asked Russia’s media watchdog Roskomnadzor to ‘restrict access’ to Instagram.
Facebook and Instagram are widely used in Russia, the latter being the most popular social media platform for young Russians.
Since early March, Twitter and Facebook have been inaccessible in Russia.
Meanwhile, on Friday, Britain imposed sanctions on 386 Russians, all of them members of Russia’s lower house of parliament.
It said it would seek to ban the export of luxury goods to Russia to increase diplomatic pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin for invading Ukraine.
The announcement said the sanctions targeted those who had voted to recognise the independence of Ukraine’s largely Russian-speaking breakaway regions of Luhansk and Donetsk in the run-up to the invasion.
AFRICA DAILY NEWS, NEW YORK
