Meta Faces Calls to Reinstate Facebook Pages of Progressive Groups
MANILA — The demand to restore Facebook pages of prominent progressive leaders has intensified after Meta unpublished several key accounts and restricted administrators’ personal profiles. Sources familiar with the matter report that the affected pages belong to Makabayan senatorial candidate and ACT Teachers Party-list representative France Castro.
Castro disclosed that her first official Facebook page was unpublished on February 16, followed by a second page on March 15. She described these actions as a form of “digital censorship and an attack on freedom of expression.”
“This is a clear case of digital harassment and censorship. Meta is systematically silencing progressive voices that speak truth to power,” the lawmaker said in a statement issued on Monday.
Concerns Over Digital Censorship and Free Speech
The affected Facebook pages serve as vital platforms for Castro to share important information with the public, particularly educators and education workers. She emphasized, “Ang aking Facebook page ay ginagamit para maghatid ng mahahalagang impormasyon sa ating mga kababayan, lalo na sa mga guro at kawani ng edukasyon. Ito ay plataporma para sa demokratikong diskurso at pagpapahayag ng mga hinaing ng mga marginalized sectors.”
According to reports, the pages experienced intermittent accessibility, occasionally appearing online only to be unpublished again shortly after. Despite repeated inquiries, Meta has yet to provide a substantial explanation for these actions.
“We demand that META immediately restore our pages and the accounts of our administrators. We also call for transparency in their content moderation policies and appeal procedures. Hindi kami magpapatahimik,” Castro asserted firmly.
Progressive Leaders Highlight Broader Implications
Former ACT Teachers Party-list representative and current nominee Antonio Tinio noted that this is not an isolated incident. He stressed the growing importance of digital platforms as public spaces for dialogue, stating that Meta bears the responsibility to protect free speech rather than suppress it.
“Nakakabahala na sa panahon ng fake news at disinformation, ang lehitimong boses ng mga progresibong mambabatas at organisasyon ang siyang pinapatahimik,” Tinio remarked, underscoring concerns about the silencing of legitimate progressive voices amid widespread misinformation.
Seeking Legal Remedies and Congressional Action
In response to these developments, Castro plans to raise the issue in Congress. The goal is to explore legal measures against what she describes as arbitrary and politically motivated censorship by the social media giant.
These calls echo a broader demand among community leaders and activists for transparency and fairness in digital content moderation, especially when it concerns political expression and marginalized sectors.
For more news and updates on Facebook page restoration, visit Filipinokami.com.