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Twitter calls it its challenging note fight For limiting the country’s accounts with India. On Monday, the company released its first official response since the Indian government demanded the recovery of more than 250 accounts that had been restored in compliance with an order from the IT ministry. Among the blocked accounts were people who criticized Caravan, a news magazine, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“We strongly believe that open and free exchanges of information have a positive impact around the world and that Tweets should continue to flow,” the company said in a statement released to BuzzFeed News.
Twitter’s statement confronts India’s increasingly authoritarian government as millions of farmers protest against agrarian reforms, shaking the nation.
On monday reports in the Indian press he said the government has asked the company to block nearly 1,200 more accounts, tweeting about the protests and directing them from Pakistan. A report He also mentioned an anonymous government official in the Times of India newspaper that India was angry with the likes of Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey for tweeting pro-protests. A Twitter spokesperson declined to comment.
On January 31, the Indian Ministry of Information Technology ordered Twitter to avoid to see more than 250 accounts of activists, political commentaries and Caravan within the country. Twitter filled it up at first, but it changed course six hours later. In the face of this, the government of India ordered the site again blocked accounts and threatened legal consequences for Indian Twitter officials for violating the order, including a fine and a seven-year prison sentence.
A week later, the accounts are still up and the Indian company’s employees are at risk of government revenge.
“The safety of our employees is a top priority for us on Twitter,” the company said in a statement. “We are in contact with the Government of India from a position of respect and have approached the former Minister of Electronics and Information Technology for a formal interview.”
Twitter’s actions placed it at the center of the freedom of expression debate amid protests against agrarian reforms that millions of farmers who are witnessing the ongoing repression of dissent will be harming their incomes. Blocking accounts for Twitter would mean allowing such repression, but failing to reduce them could have legal consequences.
“We review all reports received by the government as soon as possible and take appropriate action on those reports, ensuring that we maintain our core values and commitment to protecting the public dialogue,” Twitter said. “An update is shared through established means of communication with the Government.”
Despite his polite language, some people, including the former Twitter staff saw a double meaning in the statement. In the Arab Spring of 2011, Biz Stone co-founder and former CEO Alexander Macgillivray wrote a message clarifying the company’s stance on freedom of expression. Zen under the title: “Tweets must be spilled.”
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