![]() ![]() None are physically based in Myanmar, with Facebook citing safety concerns. ![]() In the past year, Facebook says it has hired 100 moderators who speak Burmese, including some with knowledge of regional dialects. In an open letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg in 2018, Myanmar civil society groups highlighted the social media company’s initial lack of Burmese-language speakers as a key factor in its ineffective response to hate speech. Those behind the pages use Facebook-specific features to extend their reach: People can add an Arakan Army frame to their profile pictures, for example. There are pages with English-language Arakan Army memes, poetry, and songs. One page regularly shares footage from conflict zones and training camps. Dozens of Facebook accounts promote blatant Arakan Army propaganda. But most of its propaganda campaign runs across social media platforms. ![]() It has granted interviews with its leaders in international media. The Arakan Army is also fighting for control of the narrative. Facebook has previously banned some individual Myanmar government figures, including high-ranking leaders of the Tatmadaw. Facebook acknowledges that it held conversations with the government before implementing the ban but asserts that the decision was not made as the result of government pressure. Some have argued that by censoring online support for the Arakan Army but not for the Tatmadaw, Facebook is in effect boosting the Myanmar government in its push to influence the international narrative. “he military is becoming increasingly intolerant of reporting on violations in Rakhine.” “Civilians are bearing the brunt of the latest violence in Rakhine,” said Laura Haigh, a Myanmar researcher for Amnesty. In addition to putting civilians in danger, the Arakan Army has threatened, intimidated, and abducted villagers. There is evidence of abuses against civilians by both sides in the conflict, according to a report by Amnesty International. report from its fact-finding mission last August called for Tatmadaw leaders to be investigated for crimes against humanity, including serious human rights violations and sexual violence perpetrated against ethnic Rakhine communities. While international attention has often focused on the Tatmadaw’s abuses against the Rohingya in Rakhine, Myanmar’s army has also committed violence against ethnic Rakhine communities as it seeks to solidify its control over the region. The United Nations concluded that Facebook was “a useful instrument for those seeking to spread hate, in a context where, for most users, Facebook is the internet.” In 2018, Facebook commissioned an independent assessment that connected specific posts to offline violence. But the company has faced significant international criticism for failing to police hate speech against the Rohingya Muslim minority being spread on its platform. The Arakan Army’s ultimate goal has always been to return to Rakhine, and it began an aggressive push back into the state in January.įacebook has grown tremendously in Myanmar, with an estimated 20 million users out of 53 million citizens. In exile, the Arakan Army built up its forces, which now number around 7,000. For much of the Arakan Army’s decadelong history, the Tatmadaw prevented the group from establishing a foothold in the state itself. The Arakan Army-not to be confused with the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army, another insurgent group-identifies itself as the legitimate representative of the Buddhist Rakhine people, the largest ethnic group in Rakhine state. The groups banned by Facebook-the Arakan Army, the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, the Kachin Independence Army, and the Taang National Liberation Army-are united in a coalition, the Northern Alliance.įighting between the Arakan Army and the Tatmadaw in Rakhine state has intensified dramatically since January. More than a dozen ethnic armed groups are fighting for autonomy against Myanmar’s national army, known as the Tatmadaw. Internal conflicts have simmered for decades in Myanmar. The tech company sought to prevent the groups from using its platform “to further inflame tensions on the ground.” Within days, it was clear that Facebook had failed. In the months since the ban, dozens of newly created pages that appear to support the insurgents, and the Arakan Army in particular, continue to share unambiguous propaganda. In February, Facebook banned accounts connected to four armed groups that had allegedly committed violence against civilians in Myanmar. ![]()
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