A day after $150 bn Rohingya lawsuit, Facebook’s Meta expands ban on military linked businesses in Myanmar

On Wednesday, Facebook’s parent company, Meta, said it had expanded its ban on posts linked to Myanmar’s military to include all groups, pages and accounts representing the military controlled businesses, the Associated Press reported.

This comes one day after Rohingya refugees in California filed a $150 billion lawsuit against Meta, alleging that the social media company did not take action against anti-Rohingya hate speech that contributed to violence towards the Rohingya Muslims at the hands of the military.

Speaking to the Associated Press, Asia-Pacific director of policy for Meta, Rafael Frankel, said that the action was taken “based on extensive documentation by the international community of these businesses’ direct role in funding the Tatmadaw’s [military’s] ongoing violence and human rights abuses in Myanmar.”

In February, Meta had already imposed a ban on such businesses, along with the military and military controlled state and media entities from Facebook and Instagram, after the military seized power from Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government.

As per a tally compiled by the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, security forces have used lethal force to put down nonviolent protests against military rule and at least 1,600 civilians have been killed by security forces since the takeover in February.