On January 6, Facebook decided to suspend Donald Trump from his social networks for an indefinite period, "
and at least until the handover of power on January 20
".
Now that Joe Biden has officially taken office, what should the American group do?
Give back his publication rights to the former president, or continue his sanction?
And for how long ?
Facebook opted not to make this decision on its own.
He submitted these questions to his supervisory board, an independent body responsible for deciding the thorniest questions of moderation.
The latter accepted the case and now has 90 days to make his conclusions.
Facebook will be forced to comply.
Read also: Content moderation: Facebook's Supervisory Board is operational
“
A lot of people are not comfortable with the idea that tech companies have the power to ban heads of state.
Many argue that a private company like Facebook shouldn't make such decisions on its own.
We agree with this finding,
”writes Nick Clegg, Facebook's public affairs manager.
The social network also asks its supervisory board to look into the issue of moderation of the speech of heads of state.
Read also: Trump's ban on social media opens debate on the power of Gafa
The account will remain suspended during the procedure
A long-standing Facebook project, the Supervisory Board took office at the end of 2020. It is made up of 40 prominent personalities, specialists in issues of law, technology and freedom of expression.
Among them are Helle Thorning-Schmidt, Prime Minister of Denmark between 2011 and 2015, Yemeni activist Tawakkal Karman, Nobel Peace Prize winner in 2011, Alan Rusbridger, former editor of the
Guardian
, Hungarian magistrate Andras Sajo, former judge. to the European Court of Human Rights, or the Cameroonian Julie Owono, director of the French NGO Internet sans Frontières.
The Trump file will be handled by five board members.
The latter will open a public consultation next week for citizens and associations wishing to contribute their thinking.
Donald Trump will be asked to deliver a statement where "
he will have to explain why he thinks Facebook's decision should be overturned
."
The five members will be required to submit their findings within 90 days, which will be considered by the rest of the board.
The final decision will be made public and posted on the council's website.
Facebook will have seven days to comply.
Throughout this procedure, Donald Trump's accounts on Facebook and Instagram will remain suspended.
