Social media companies cannot act like the ‘Wild West’ and ignore the laws of the land, the Taoiseach has warned.
Simon Harris made the comments yesterday, August 7, in response to the role social media is playing in riots in Belfast and in other cities across the UK, and following a threat made to his life and that of his family online this week.
Mr. Harris also warned social media companies they would be hit with significant fines if they did not comply with the laws of the land. He said Coimisiún na Meán, Ireland’s media regulator, will be introducing an Online Safety Code later this year which will tell companies what is acceptable to post on the web.
It comes as thousands of protesters took to the streets across Britain last night to face down far-right rioters. Threats of disorder had led to shops being boarded up, restaurants shuttering, and law firms that deal with immigration going into lockdown – but crowds of anti-fascist marchers responded by massing around areas thugs had threatened to target.
Mr. Harris also said he is willing to meet with Elon Musk, owner of X/Twitter, to discuss the issue. Mr. Musk has been criticized for saying "civil war is inevitable" in response to the riots and social unrest that have engulfed the UK following the fatal stabbings of three children in Southport.
X (Twitter) owner, Elon Musk.
Mr. Harris said on Wednesday: "Social media doesn’t get to absolve itself. We can’t have a situation where it’s seen as some kind of Wild West over there that doesn’t come into contact with the same laws and enforcement [as the companies].
"Online media providers have to make sure they act with speed and, quite frankly, in a general sense, they’re not living up to that obligation at all, at all."
He warned: "If you [social media firms] don’t comply with that, we’re going to hit you where it hurts with very, very, very significant fines that can run to tens of millions of euros.
"In addition to that, we need to make sure through that code that individuals within that as companies can be held to account, just like your newspaper editor would be if something went wrong in terms of being on the right or wrong side of the law in your publication."
He said these rules would be in place by the end of the year.
"The era of self-regulation of these companies is well and truly over. This will be the year in which there will be binding codes, financial sanctions and personal liability on social media companies, and that day can’t come quickly enough."
Mr. Harris also rejected any suggestion that Ireland is a soft touch on social media firms because they employ so many people in the country.
The Taoiseach said: "If anybody in any social media company is dining out on or thinking that somehow or other Ireland won’t be robust in relation to this, they’re about to find out how extraordinarily wrong they are."
Coimisiún na Meán confirmed yesterday that it met with Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, over threats made to the Taoiseach this week.
A spokesman said: "Coimisiún na Meán does not have powers to compel the immediate removal of illegal content from online platforms. Our role is to make sure that the platforms’ content reporting systems are working effectively in compliance with the law.
"We met with Meta about the threats directed at An Taoiseach and his family.
"We have also been in touch with representatives from An Garda Síochána about this incident. We are now assessing Meta’s compliance with their obligations under the EU Digital Services Act."
A threat of violence against Mr. Harris as well as his wife and two children reportedly remained on Instagram for two days after gardaí asked for its removal.
Security sources said that they regarded this threat as "deeply sinister," with it containing a reported warning that "they’re coming for you."
Mr. Harris’s security has been repeatedly threatened since he took office as Taoiseach, but gardaí are investigating this latest "legitimate" death threat.
The Taoiseach said: "It’s totally unacceptable that any media platform – digital, online, print – would allow a threat towards anybody remain for a significant period of time. Because one of the concerns that I think, not just I have, but I think people right across the country have is the speed at which information gets shared online.
"It is utterly unacceptable that any post towards any person, young, old, public figure, private figure, inciting violence would be left there for a period of time. Because, as you know, it’s not just that. It stays there in a static location. It gets shared and shared and shared hundreds of times, hundreds of thousands of times."
He said that the regulator would be "following up" with Meta to seek further information about the circumstances of this incident and the firm’s response, adding: "We will then consider our next steps. We have a range of powers available to us under our Online Safety Framework, which consists of the Online Safety and Media Regulation Act, the EU Digital Services Act, and the EU Terrorist Content Online Regulation."
Mr. Harris also said that he would be bringing stakeholders together to see "what more Ireland can do" about managing the role of social media. He said: "There are children mentally unwell in our country today as a result of this. There are probably children and young people who may not be with us today in this world as a result of cyberbullying. With companies that make great billions of euro and dollars and everything else – and fair play to them, good luck to them – comes great responsibility. I’ll meet with anybody to have that engagement. Of course, I will."
Justice Minister Helen McEntee said that it is important that "faceless trolls or faceless individuals" on social media don’t get away with making comments that they "wouldn’t get away with in person."
Justice Minister Helen McEntee.
The Taoiseach also criticized people who "hijacked" the Irish flag while standing alongside loyalist "paramilitary actors" in Belfast and shouting racist abuse.
Violent scenes erupted following an anti-immigration protest in Belfast on Saturday. Protesters waving both the Union flag and the Irish tricolor took part in the protest at Belfast City Hall.
A number of people also carried the "Coolock Says No" banner, which was used at protests outside a former Crown Paints factory earmarked to house asylum seekers in the north Dublin suburb.
"Anybody who travels from really anywhere and thinks they should take the Irish flag with them and stand alongside potentially paramilitary actors in Northern Ireland, shouting racist abuse, threatening people, and indeed, being at the very least in proximity to buildings that were set on fire, is the exact opposite of what the definition of patriotism would be," Mr. Harris said. "They are people who bring shame to their community.
"They’re not, can I say this, reflective of the Coolock community, and how dare they hijack our flag and the name Coolock, when really what they are is people who are agitating and advocating racism, division, and we should call it out. If you intend to travel from our jurisdiction to commit a crime in another jurisdiction, you too will meet the full rigours of the law. Leave our flag alone. Leave the name Coolock alone, and those racist, horrific scenes that we’ve seen in recent days should be called out for exactly what they are."
Tensions remain high in the UK but yesterday, in major locations, counter-protesters vastly outnumbered those who had turned up to protest against migration.
More than 5,000 demonstrators flooded the streets in Walthamstow, east London, to stave off a far-right rally outside an immigration center.
Thousands more were also seen taking to the streets of Liverpool to protect an asylum center.
In Brighton, a wall of police was seen shielding a handful of men – one of whom was draped in a Union Jack – from a crowd of protesters shouting: "Nazi scum, off our streets." Fireworks were let off in Bristol amid a protest which was largely peaceful and antihate protesters also gathered in Southampton and Aldershot.
However, clashes broke out in Accrington as protesters holding "Stand Up To Racism" placards faced off with a group chanting "stop the boats."
* This article was originally published on Extra.ie.
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