Facebook ban of anti-Muslim slur sparks outrage in Myanmar

Myanmar netizens are not happy with Facebook after the social network barred people from posting the word ‘kalar’, often used as a slur against Muslims, The Express Tribune reported.

Facebook reportedly barred dozens of users from the site following the increased use of the controversial term on the social network.

The company’s move is a part of the global efforts to counter hate speech, violent threats or deliberately misleading information on their platform.

Some users said they were even blocked after writing other words that included the same sound in the Burmese alphabet. The complaints highlight the difficulties Facebook has, monitoring millions of posts in multiple languages.

One Facebook user, Aung Kaung Myat said he had been prevented from liking, posting and sharing content on the site for 24 hours last week for writing about the apparent ban, as were many of his friends.

In protest against the apparent ban, two Facebook users have created an event called “We own Kalar”. Nearly 1,400 people agreed to attend the protest, scheduled for Wednesday in Yangon.

“Even though no action is taken against fake accounts which share hate speech and spew abuse… action is taken over (words we use every day),” said the organisers. “We own the word as we have been using it for decades and over the centuries.”

Myanmar is a Muslim minority country witnessing a rising Islamophobia. The government has been seeking to clamp down on hate speech after a spike in anti-Muslim actions by Buddhist hardliners.

Facebook didn’t comment on the situation and Myanmar’s government said it had not pushed for a ban.