Meta to restore Donald Trump's Facebook, Instagram accounts

Donald Trump. Pic/AP

Meta, the parent company of Facebook, has announced that it will be reinstating former US President Donald Trump's Facebook and Instagram accounts in the coming weeks.

The announcement was made by Meta's President of Global Affairs Meta Nick Clegg in a blog post on Wednesday. Meta, on January 7, 2021, suspended Trump's Facebook and Instagram accounts for two years following his praise for people engaged in violence at the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

"The suspension was an extraordinary decision taken in extraordinary circumstances. The normal state of affairs is that the public should be able to hear from a former President of the US, and a declared candidate for that office again, on our platforms," Clegg elaborated in the blog post.

"Like any other Facebook or Instagram user, Mr Trump is subject to our Community Standards. In light of his violations, he now also faces heightened penalties for repeat offences - penalties which will apply to other public figures whose accounts are reinstated from suspensions related to civil unrest under our updated protocol," he added.

Clegg also said that Meta is reinstating Trump's Facebook and Instagram accounts, however, with new guardrails in place to "deter repeat offences".

"We know that any decision we make on this issue will be fiercely criticised. Reasonable people will disagree over whether it is the right decision. But a decision had to be made, so we have tried to make it as best we can in a way that is consistent with our values and the process we established...," he asserted.

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