Cambodia: Meta rejects recommendation to suspend ex-PM Hun Sen from Facebook

Meta Platforms on Monday (August 28) rejected a recommendation from its oversight board that it suspend the account of Cambodia's former prime minister Hun Sen over allegations he used it to threaten opponents. According to a report by the news agency Reuters, Meta said that suspending accounts outside its regular enforcement framework would not be consistent with its policies, including "our protocol on restricting accounts of public figures during civil unrest."

In June, the oversight board, which is funded by Meta butoperates independently, advised that the company suspend Hun Sen's account for six months over a video that it said violated rules on violent threats. Meta said it agreed to take down the video but added it would respond to the board's recommendation to suspend Sen following a review.

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Intimidation using Facebook

In the video from January, Sen, 71, said that those who accused his Cambodian People's Party (CPP) of buying votes in a local election last year should file a legal case, or face a beating from the party's supporters.

Sen, who served as prime minister for 28 years before being replaced by his son Hun Manet last week, has been accused by human rights groups of using Facebook to intimidate political opponents and discourage criticism of his government.

Sen's Facebook page, which he had temporarily stopped using, had a following of 14 million. Reuters reported that new content started to appear again just a few days after the election in July. The CPP won all but five of 125 lower house seats in the election, which was widely dismissed as a sham after the main opposition party was barred from running.

On Tuesday, Meta's oversight board said that it stood by its decision and called on Facebook's parent company to "do everything in its power to deter public figures who exploit its platforms to incite violence".

Meanwhile, Cambodia's ministry of post and telecommunications congratulated Facebook for its decision and reiterated that the Meta oversight board was still unwelcome. "They made bad recommendations, which were political in nature, and interfered with Cambodia's internal affairs," the ministry said in a Facebook post on Tuesday.

New PM pledges to make Cambodia a 'high-income country' by 2050

Last Thursday (August 24), Cambodia's new Prime Minister Hun Manet pledged to make the kingdom a "high-income country" by 2050. "The next 25 years will be a new cycle for Cambodia," Manet said in a televised speech. Manet also said that the new strategy included improving healthcare and education, as well as addressing climate change.

(With inputs from agencies)

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