Twitter, Facebook Accuse China Of Weaponizing Social Media To Push Disinformation Against Hong Kong Protestors

Social media giants Twitter and Facebook announced Monday that they have dismantled a Chinese state-backed disinformation campaign against the protests in Hong Kong.

Twitter said it suspended 936 accounts with ties to the campaign, with Facebook also suspending and removing pages and accounts for the same reason.

Twitter said that the 936 accounts "were deliberately and specifically attempting to sow political discord in Hong Kong, including undermining the legitimacy and political positions of the protest movement on the ground." Twitter also proactively suspended 200,000 accounts which were part of the network.

Protesters in Hong Kong are demonstrating against an extradition bill that was proposed by the government that would essentially allow local authorities to detain and extradite citizens who had been accused of crimes by China.

The protesters feel that the bill would undermine Hong Kong's autonomy and put any local citizen at risk of extradition to the mainland, where they could face an unfair trial.

On June 15, Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam said that the bill was dead but refused to withdraw the legislation, which meant the demonstrations continued. The protests have taken a dark turn due to multiple suicides and rising violence. Operations at Hong Kong international airport have also been disrupted.

Social media giants have been proactive on weeding out accounts that push disinformation after research showed that Russia and other countries used the platforms to spread "fake news" during the 2016 presidential elections.

Twitter has also been criticized for advertisements stemming from Chinese state media organization The Global Times which misrepresent the human rights situation in the Muslim-majority Xinjiang region.