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N. Zealand PM urges global action on social media perils
CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand, March 20, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – New Zealand Prime
Minister Jacinda Ardern on Wednesday called for a global response to the
dangers of social media as the Muslim community began burying their dead five
days after the twin-mosques massacre.
A white supremacist gunman streamed his 17 minutes of carnage in which he
is accused of killing 50 Muslim worshippers during their Friday prayers.
Facebook said the livestream from Christchurch was viewed fewer than 200
times but it had to remove a staggering 1.5 million videos as footage of the
slaughter went viral.
Ardern said while her focus was on the people of New Zealand, there were
issues world leaders needed “to confront collectively”.
“We cannot, for instance, just simply deal with some of the issues we face
with our social media to be dealt with on a case-by-case basis,” she said.
“There is an argument there to be made for us to take a united front on a
global issue.
“This is not just an issue for New Zealand, the fact that social media
platforms have been used to spread violence (and) material that incites
violence. All of us need to present a united front.”
In the United States, a congressional panel said it was asking top
executives from US tech firms to explain the proliferation online of the
“horrific” video.
The House Committee on Homeland Security called it “critically important”
to filter such violent images.
Social media companies have long argued that they are not responsible for
what is put on their platforms but Ardern has countered that they cannot
simply be “all profit, no responsibility”.
A 44-year-old businessman was remanded in custody after a preliminary
court appearance in Christchurch Wednesday on charges of distributing footage
of one of the mosque shootings.
If found guilty, he faces up to 14 years in jail.
Ardern also announced New Zealand would hold two minutes of silence as a
mark of respect for the dead on Friday and women in the country were being
encouraged to wear headscarves to show their support for the Muslim
community.
BSS/AFP/MSY/1236 hrs