Dhaka – facebook authorities are set to have talks with the Bangladesh government Sunday on issues of violence against women through the misuse the popular social networking site, official news agency BSS reported quoting state minister for posts and telecommunications Tarana Halim.
“facebook is sending tomorrow their South Asian public policy manager and legal consultant for the region for talks with us over the misuse of their site causing violence against women in Bangladesh,” she has been quoted to have been said.
facebook remains suspended in Bangladesh from late last month on the plea of security. Tarana said the Facebook executives were coming responding to her call seeking the social networking site authority’s initiatives to prevent the misuse of the site.The state minister said the meeting has no linkage with the temporary restriction on the facebook imposed by the government over security ground.
Tarana said she earlier wrote to facebook citing of examples how the network was misused forcing several women in the country to commit suicides and how the miscreants uploaded objectionable contents often exposing girls of Bangladesh to extreme miseries.
“We will explain to them (facebook) that there are issues relating to women that could be acceptable to western countries but cause debacle in our country for social and cultural reasons,” she added.
The facebook officials will meet home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, state minister for posts and telecommunications Tarana Halim and state minister for ICT Junaid Ahmed Palak tomorrow morning at the secretariat. Officials concerned will also be present there.
On November 30, Tarana Halim sent an email to the facebook pointing out the adverse effects of facebook’s misuse in Bangladesh. Immediately after a day, the facebook replied the mail and showed interest for meeting.
In the email, the state minister wrote that Facebook should consider “protecting its goodwill in Bangladesh, where it has around 30 million users”.
Tarana Halim said after assuming the office of the state minister she had been communicating with the facebook authority to find out a way about stopping flow of disrespectful contents involving women, fake ID, threat and other misuses in the social networking site.
facebook doesn’t accept that there are many things considered defamatory in Bangladesh and also often want a case to be filed when someone complains.
The state minister said the government needs to sensitise them (facebook) on Bangladesh’s social context. – News Desk
