Nepal has decided to ban video-based social media TikTok. It has been alleged that “hatred is being spread in the society through Tiktok app”. Porn videos are spreading through this TikTok app. TikTok app is not following the right rules. A section of the society has blamed this app for the spread of various criminal activities.
TikTok is banned in countries like India, the United States, European Union and the United Kingdom have banned TikTok due to security concerns.
Since 2020, the Chinese short video making app TikTok has been permanently banned in India. Before the ban, TikTok had 120 million users in India. In June 2020, 20 Indian soldiers were martyred in a clash between the Chinese and Indian armies on the Ladakh border. After that, various groups and organizations started a movement to ban Chinese products and different types of apps in the country. Amidst the movement, the Indian government banned 59 Chinese apps after interacting with common people and political figures on Narendra Modi’s regular program ‘Maan Ki Baat Live’.
The apps have been accused of data smuggling. After several more rounds, India banned hundreds of Chinese apps. Among these apps, TikTok was at the top as the most used. This time Nepal followed the path of its neighboring country India.
What is TikTok?
TikTok is a short video sharing app with a feed that allows users to create numerous short videos. The app is known for its charming, often relatable humorous content.
TikTok is the sixth-most used social platform in the world. The app was bought by Chinese company ByteDance in April 2018. Since then, it has become a sensation with 800 million users and 1.5 billion downloads worldwide. In the last four years, at least 1,647 cases of cybercrime have been reported on the app.
Why Nepal had to make such a decision?
According to a report by The Kathmandu Post, It has been accused that the TikTok app is being operated without proper rules. Due to which obscenity and various types of criminal acts are spreading all over Nepal through this app. According to the government, while freedom of expression is a fundamental right, a large section of society has criticized TikTok for encouraging hate speech. There have also been calls for immediate closure of this app. From that, the government of Nepal has decided to stop TikTok. The Nepal minister said that the decision to shut down TikTok will be executed after setting a specific deadline.
The decision to ban TikTok was taken in a cabinet meeting on Monday. A petition was filed in this regard last September. According to the petition, TikTok is popular as a social media. But it is claimed that the growth of obscene videos has actually started through this. Criminal activities are also going on. It is also claimed that attacks on vulgar language have increased through the TikTok app. For all these reasons, the demand to ban TikTok was raised. Two months have passed since the filing of the petition. Now the government is ready to accept that petition.
The government published guidelines for social media platforms outlining prohibited content, including hate speech, sexual exploitation and drug promotion, fake news, terrorism-related messages and private photos posted without consent.
This has forced all social media companies to open offices in Nepal so that they can better address public concerns by removing objectionable content. Popular social media platforms like Facebook, X, and Instagram which have three months to set up offices or appoint representatives in Nepal.
Government has contacted TikTok multiple times but the company has refused to address their concerns.
Responses
Nepal’s Minister of Communication and Information Technology Rekha Sharma stated that the decision to ban the TikTok platform was made because it has been used to share content that consistently disrupts social harmony, family structure and social relationships.
Nepal Telecom Authority chief Purushottam Khanal said “internet service providers have been asked to shut down the app. Some places have already closed, while others closed it on Monday night”.
Opposition leaders in Nepal criticized the move to ban the app. They said it lacked “efficiency, maturity and accountability”.
Pradeep Gawali, former foreign minister of Nepal and senior leader of the Communist Party of Nepal, said, ‘There is a lot of unwanted content on other social media as well. What needs to be done is to control and not restrict them.
Gagan Thapa, leader of the Nepali Congress Party, claimed the government’s intention was to “curb freedom of expression”.
He posted on X that regulation is needed to discourage those who abuse social media before, but shutting down social media in the name of regulation is an interference with personal freedom.
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