MOSCOW, March 31. /TASS/. Russian bloggers can sue the Meta Company (recognized as extremist in Russia) for damages as a result of its extremist activities, the Safe Internet League is ready to help in supporting such lawsuits, Yekaterina Mizulina, director of the organization, and member of the Russian Public Chamber said at a round-table meeting dedicated to new realities for social networks users.
"After the court recognized Meta as extremist organization, Facebook and Instagram (Internet platforms banned in Russia since it is owned by the Meta Corporation deemed extremist by Russian authorities) have absolutely zero chances of continuing to work in Russia. Russia and the entire Russian-speaking world are losing a huge audience now. It is still proceeding gradually, but it is like that," said Mizulina.
According to her, any manifestation of extremism and ethnic hatred should be nipped in the bud, as Russia has done. "Any complaints by bloggers should be addressed not to Russia, but to the Meta Company. And bloggers have every right to sue the company for damages as a result of extremist activities coming from these two platforms or the Meta Corporation in general. The Safe Internet League is ready to provide full legal assistance, support for such lawsuits both in our country and in other countries, if they are filed in the court", the organization’s chief emphasized.
She added that the Safe Internet League also asked the Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology, and Mass Media and the Ministry of Statistics to provide straightforward explanations to people about the current situation with foreign social networks. "For example, [it is necessary] to make a clear statement that now we are all switching to other platforms, like VKontakte, Rutube, and so on, and that they are technologically ready for such a move, and for such a huge influx of users," Mizulina stressed.
Russian platforms also must provide guarantees that they will fight against illegal content and encourage bona fide users, noted Mizulina. "We also ask for clear explanations from the Prosecutor General's Office, from Roskomnadzor (media watchdog) due to the court decision to recognize Meta as an extremist organization. People have a lot of questions: can they use social networks, would they violate the law in this case, is it necessary to remove all markings from goods, and so on," she concluded.
On March 21, Moscow’s Tverskoy Court backed a complaint by the Russian Prosecutor General's Office and recognized the activities of Instagram and Facebook, owned by Meta, as extremist, and banned their operation in Russia. The prohibition does not apply to Meta’s WhatsApp messenger. Meanwhile, citizens and organizations will not be held accountable for extremism if they use Instagram and Facebook.