ALBANIA’S GOVERNMENT HAS IMPOSED A YEAR-LONG BAN ON TIK TOK – Rights groups say the ban threatens commerce and free speech
Albania’s government has imposed a year-long ban on the Tik Tok social media app. Rights groups and business owners say the ban threatens commerce and free speech ahead of May elections.
Prime Minister Edi Rama announced the ban on Dec. 21 after a 14-year-old boy was stabbed to death in November by a fellow pupil, a crime that local media reports said occurred after the boys clashed online. TikTok is expected to be taken down in the coming weeks.
The move follows bans or partial bans in at least 20 countries due to worries about improper videos or security concerns linked to the app’s owner, China-based ByteDance, and its proximity to the Chinese government.
“This creates a dangerous precedent that at any moment governments can close different platforms,” said Orkidea Xhaferaj, from the Tirana-based think tank SCiDEV.
TikTok said it was seeking “urgent clarity” from the Albanian government because it says “multiple reports have in fact confirmed videos leading up to this incident were being posted on another platform, not TikTok.”
