The Nepal Government, taking stern action against
encouraging hate speech, has decided to impose a ban on Chinese short-form
video app, TikTok. The decision was taken at a Cabinet meeting to prevent negative
effects on social harmony.
As per a Kathmandu Post report, the Nepal Government
said a major section of society criticised TikTok for encouraging a tendency of
hate speech. However, when the prohibition will be implemented is yet to be
ascertained.
“The decision to ban TikTok will be implemented
shortly, but no specific deadline has been set,” The Himalayan Times quoted
Nepal Communications and Information Technology Minister Rekha Sharma.
The ban order comes days after the Nepal Government
made it compulsory for social media platforms such as Facebook, X, YouTube,
TikTok and others to set up their offices in the country.
The move was taken considering the increasing number
of complaints about the absence of companies’ representatives in Nepal, making
it difficult for the authorities to address users’ concerns and even to remove
objectionable content from the platforms.
All social media platforms operating in the country
must set up an office or designate a representative in Nepal within three
months of the directives coming into effect.
Simultaneously, these companies are mandated to
register their social media platforms with the Ministry of Information and
Communication Technology. Failure to comply may result in the ministry shutting
down platforms that lack proper registration within the Nepalese jurisdiction.
The short-video platform, owned by Chinese tech giant
ByteDance, was banned in Bharat on June 29, 2020 over national security issues.
The app was an instant success in Bharat soon after it
launched in September 2016. For TikTok, Bharat was among the biggest markets
outside China and, in 2019, the 15-second video platform was the top downloaded
app in Bharat on the Android platform.
NE Watch Desk
