Facebook freezes the page of Venezuelan President Maduro
A Facebook spokesman said today, Saturday: Facebook has frozen the page of Venezuelan President (Nicolas Maduro), for violating policies that prohibit publishing wrong information about the Coronavirus by promoting a treatment that it claims without evidence that it can cure the disease.
In January, Maduro described Carvativir, an oral solution derived from thyme, as a miracle drug that eliminates the Coronavirus without any side effects, a claim that doctors say is not backed by science.
Facebook has removed a video clip in which Maduro promotes the drugs because it is violating a policy against false claims that something can guarantee the prevention of infection with the Coronavirus or can guarantee recovery from the Coronavirus.
The spokesman told Reuters: We follow the WHO guidelines that say: There is currently no drug to treat the virus, and given the repeated violations of our rules, we have also frozen the page for 30 days, during which it will be available for reading only.
Maduro says in the video: Carvativer, who he calls the miracle drops of the Venezuelan doctor of the nineteenth century (Jose Gregorio Hernandez) Jose Gregorio Hernandez, can be used preventively and curatively against the Coronavirus
A Facebook spokesperson said: The page administrators have been notified of the policy violation, and that Maduro's account via the Instagram photo-sharing social media platform, which is owned by Facebook, will not be affected.
In February, Maduro said: "The censored Facebook videos in which Carvatever appears are being censored."
He has said in the past: He and his allies have been unfairly treated by social media companies, including what he calls arbitrary account suspensions.
Maduro frequently uses social media, including Facebook and Twitter, and has occasionally broadcast speeches via Facebook Live.
As of Friday, official figures for Venezuela showed 154,905 cases of coronavirus and 1,543 deaths, although his opposition critics say the actual number is likely higher due to limited testing.