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Access to a “free and open internet” is a human right. So says Twitter, after the company was kicked out of Nigeria.
The social platform made news for having the tables dramatically turned on them after they censored a tweet of Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari. The Nigerian government responded by banning Twitter from the use by its citizens.
“The Federal Government has suspended, indefinitely, the operations of the microblogging and social networking service, Twitter, in Nigeria,” the Nigerian Ministry of Information and Culture tweeted Friday night.
The government also said they would begin licensing social media platforms and other internet-related information services.
Twitter issued a breathtaking statement in response, considering their infamous censorship and bans of hundreds of prominent persons and dissident viewpoints. A tweet from the company’s official feed reacted:
“We are deeply concerned by the blocking of Twitter in Nigeria. Access to the free and #OpenInternet is an essential human right in modern society….
We will work to restore access for all those in Nigeria who rely on Twitter to communicate and connect with the world. #KeepitOn”
Ban-Happy Big Tech Bristles at Their Own Ban
Twitter’s statement might well be used against the company at some future legal proceeding. They have heavily censored and banned users and viewpoints. In doing so, they not only deprived those persons from the “human rights” they claimed for themselves in their tweet but their censorship deprived American citizens of their right to receive communications from elected officials, including former President Donald Trump, as well as much other information.
Many topics surrounding election fraud, COVID policies, vaccines, the possible origins of the COVID virus, anti-Antifa sentiments, and more have been heavily censored.
Some states, including Florida and Texas, have recently responded with legislation to limit de facto monopoly platforms and services from throttling users and viewpoints. And countries like Poland, Russia, and now Nigeria are taking action against Big Tech political manipulation.
Twitter’s hypocritical response to the taste of being banned didn’t go unnoticed by many observers and commenters. Political commentator Lauren Chen spoke for many in a tweet directed at the company:
“So why are you depriving President Trump, Laura Loomer, Mike Lindell, Milo Yiannopoulos, Alex Jones, and countless others of this ‘essential human right’?”