Govt requests Facebook to take down anti-polio content

PM’s focal person says in letter harmful content putting lives of vaccinators at risk


Our Correspondent May 03, 2019
PM’s focal person says in letter harmful content putting lives of vaccinators at risk. PHOTO: REUTERS

ISLAMABAD: In a bid to remove hurdles in achieving a polio-free Pakistan, the government has requested the management of Facebook to take down the misleading content about vaccination campaigns on its pages.

According to an official correspondence signed by Prime Minister’s Focal Person on Polio Eradication Babar bin Atta on Friday, “The harmful content on Facebook is not just jeopardising our polio eradication initiative, but is also putting the lives of our anti-polio vaccinators at risk.”

The government specifically requested the Facebook’s management to “block or manage the dissemination of anti-polio vaccination propaganda from their platforms operating from within the country”. It also expressed appreciation for Facebook’s policies and regulations dealing with hateful content and propaganda in the letter.

The National Emergency Operations Centre also said in a statement that it was high time that Pakistan took strict measures to regulate vaccine-related harmful content available on social media to address the misconceptions about polio vaccine.

“The parental refusals due to propaganda on Facebook regarding the vaccine is emerging as a major obstacle in achieving complete eradication of the virus,” stated the PM focal person’s letter. “Pakistan has made great strides in eradicating polio; however, concerns of vaccine safety and efficacy (fuelled by anti-vaccine propaganda on social media) have generated a high number of vaccine refusals from parents and/or children reported as missing during immunisation campaigns.

“Effectively communicating and inspiring refusal communities to support the programme is essential in order to close immunity gaps and ultimately end virus transmission in the country.”

It further stated that the Pakistan Polio Eradication Programme had compiled a sample report of some of the pages and provided them to the head of public policy of Facebook. Those pages were engaged in harmful propaganda against vaccination in particular and generally about the programme.

Pakistan has also pointed out that the content was in violation of Facebook’s policies as per its community standards, particularly its clause referring to “integrity and authenticity”.

The letter said the content stood to incite harm and violence against polio workers, and might further deteriorate the programme’s coverage of vulnerable children and their subsequent immunity against the crippling virus.

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