SOCIAL media platforms should not become playgrounds for bigotry, says Opposition MP Ketan Lal.
He told Parliament the Government should introduce clear legislation mandating accountability on public pages held by or run by government officials or the Government itself.
“If someone uses a loudspeaker to yell racial comments in a marketplace, I am sure they will be taken to task,” Mr Lal said.
“Why is our digital space any different?
“That is the recommendation I want to give to the Government.”
He said the Online Safety Commission must be resourced and empowered to take swift, visible action.
“Once posts are shared on the official page of the Prime Minister, the comment section at the bottom, which is posted by the public, the ones that I have seen and read, it is full of racist comments against me or basically calling me ‘kaidia go back to India’, and so forth.
“So, basically, I am trying to explain in this budget that racism is at an all-time high in social media and there is a recommendation for the Government to take into consideration for the Online Safety Commission’s budget.
“Just scroll through official Facebook pages of the Prime Minister and the Minister for Fisheries, the comments are vile, offensive and deeply racist.
“They are often aimed at myself not because of what I say but because of who I am. This is the ugly cost of doing our jobs as an Opposition Member of Parliament but I ask this House, what is the Government doing about this?
“Where is the leadership?
“Racism on government platforms is not just offensive, it is dangerous.
“We are all protected under the 2013 Constitution, but when racism thrives on official pages, that protection starts to feel more symbolic.”
