Big Tech Platforms To Be Fined $13,500,000 per case of Ideological Censorship
“Freedom of speech is not something that anonymous moderators working for private companies should decide,” Kaleta said. “Instead, that is for the national body; duly elected officials and all industries, car, phones, finance, were unregulated till they grew too large; the same should happen with Big Tech.”
“It’s very disturbing because if Big Tech sees themselves as an organization empowered enough to ban a sitting president of the U.S., it sends a message to the world – that we can ban anyone, whenever we want,” he urged.
Under the new legislation, any platform that bans a user would face fines of $13.5 million unless the content is also illegal under Polish law. An arbitration committee would be set up to oversee disputes.
The Polish prime minister promised that his government would “do everything to define the frame of operations of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other similar platforms” with respect to free speech.
“In Poland we will regulate with appropriate national regulation. We will also suggest similar laws be passed in all of the EU,” he added.
“Social media platforms have to serve us, and not the interests of their powerful owners. Everyone has the right to freedom of speech. Poland will defend that right.”
Ministers in Morawiecki’s government have previously explained that the regulations will take the form of an ‘Act for the Freedom to Express One’s Views and Obtain and Disseminate Information on the Internet’, giving social media users a statutory right to appeal bans and content removal to tech giants — with the possibility of further, all-digital, and anonymized appeals to a new Court for the Protection of Freedom of Speech.
europe/2021/01/15/prime-minister-poland-vows-stop-big-tech-censoring-those-who-think-differently/
breitbart.com/europe/2021/01/21/salvini-allies-label-big-tech-danger-democracy/
