Mexican leader slams social media ‘censorship’ of Trump

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Thursday criticized what he called social media “censorship” of Donald Trump in response to posts accused of inflaming violence in the US Capitol.

“I don’t like censorship. I don’t like that they censor anyone and take away the right to send a message on Twitter or Facebook. I don’t agree with that. I don’t accept that,” Lopez Obrador told reporters.

He said that it was the responsibility of the state, not companies, to decide if remarks were harmful, and people should be able to express themselves freely on social media.

Twitter and Facebook suspended Trump on Wednesday after he repeated his numerous false claims about fraud and other impropriety in the election he lost to Joe Biden.

Facebook went even further Thursday, banning Trump indefinitely for using the platform “to incite violent insurrection against a democratically elected government.”

The unprecedented sanctions came after Trump’s supporters stormed the US Capitol and interrupted the procedure to certify Biden’s election victory, leading to one woman being shot and killed by police.

Lopez Obrador declined to comment on the violence itself, saying his administration had a diplomatic principle of non-intervention and that they are “matters that must be resolved by the US people.”

The leftwing populist has had a cordial relationship with Trump and was one of the last high-profile leaders to congratulate Biden on his election victory. (AFP)