Former President Donald Trump will be suspended from Facebook for at least two years.
“Given the gravity of the circumstances that led to Mr. Trump’s suspension, we believe his actions constituted a severe violation of our rules which merit the highest penalty available under the new enforcement protocols,” Facebook’s VP of Global Affairs, Nick Clegg, wrote in a blog post on Friday.
He continued, “We are suspending his accounts for two years, effective from the date of the initial suspension on January 7 this year.”
After two years, the social media platform will “look to experts to assess whether the risk to public safety has receded.” When the suspension is lifted, “There will be a strict set of rapidly escalating sanctions that will be triggered if Mr. Trump commits further violations in future, up to and including permanent removal of his pages and accounts.”
Acknowledging the penalties Facebook applies or does not apply “will be controversial,” Clegg added, “We know today’s decision will be criticized by many people on opposing sides of the political divide — but our job is to make a decision in as proportionate, fair and transparent a way as possible, in keeping with the instruction given to us by the Oversight Board.”
Trump responded to the decision in the statement, calling it “an insult” to those who voted for him, adding, “They shouldn’t be allowed to get away with this censoring and silencing, and ultimately, we will win. Our Country can’t take this abuse anymore!”
Last month, Facebook’s independent Oversight Board upheld the social media platform’s decision to suspend the former president’s account, as IJR previously reported.
The board also said Facebook violated its own rules by “imposing a suspension that was ‘indefinite'” and gave it six months to decide a new penalty.
On Friday, the board tweeted, “The Oversight Board is reviewing Facebook’s response to the Board’s decision in the case involving former US President Donald Trump and will offer further comment once this review is complete.”