TIRANA – Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama on Dec 21 said the government would shut down social network TikTok for at least a year from 2025.
“We are going to chase this thug out of our neighbourhood for one year”, he told a meeting with Albanian teachers, parents and psychologists in Tirana.
The move is part of a broader plan to make schools safer, reported Reuters.
The government would launch programmes to “serve the education of students and help parents follow their children’s journey”, he added.
The blocking of the controversial social network comes less than a month after a 14-year-old student was killed and another injured in a fight near a school in Tirana. Local media had reported that the incident followed arguments between the two boys on social media. Videos had also emerged on TikTok of minors supporting the killing.
The fatal incident sparked a debate in the country among parents, psychologists and educational institutions about the impact of social networks on young people.
“In China, TikTok promotes how students can take courses, how to protect nature, how to keep traditions,” said Mr Rama.
“But on the TikTok outside China we see only scum and mud. Why do we need this?“
Several countries have begun debating measures against TikTok, part of a wider debate on the influence of social media on vulnerable groups, such as children and adolescents. In one of the world’s toughest regulations targeting Big Tech, Australia approved a complete social media ban for children under 16 in November.
“The problem today is not our children, the problem today is us, the problem today is our society, the problem today is TikTok and all the others that are taking our children hostage,” Mr Rama said.
TikTok said it was seeking “urgent clarity” from the Albanian government, reported Reuters.
“We found no evidence that the perpetrator or victim had TikTok accounts, and multiple reports have in fact confirmed videos leading up to this incident were being posted on another platform, not TikTok,” a company spokesperson said.
TikTok’s controversial ‘challenges’
TikTok’s huge global success has been partly built on the appeal of its “challenges” – an interactive call that invites users to create videos featuring dances, jokes or games that sometimes go viral.
The platform attracts young people with a never-ending scroll of ultra-brief videos. It has more than one billion active users worldwide.
Neighbouring countries such as Kosovo, North Macedonia and Serbia have also reported a negative impact of the platform, especially on the youth.
At least 22 cases of self-harm among girls from different schools reported two months ago in Kosovo, in the south-western city of Gjakova, were blamed on a TikTok challenge.
Two weeks ago, local media in North Macedonia reported that hospital there had treated dozen of teenagers for injuries sustained after attempting the “Superman” TikTok challenge.
It involves one child leaping on to the linked arms of a few others.
And in Serbia, in the south-western city of Novi Pazar, there were reports that children in several high schools had taken part in a “choking” challenge.
A search for this on TikTok now produces a warning message from the platform that some challenges can be dangerous, and links to a short guide on how to spot them.
TikTok has faced accusations of espionage in the United States, and is under investigation by the European Union over claims it was used to sway Romania’s presidential election in favour of a far-right candidate.
The platform also has been banned for use by personnel in state institutions in several countries.
AFP, among more than a dozen other fact-checking organisations, is paid by TikTok in several countries to verify videos that potentially contain false information. AFP, REUTERS
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Publish date : 2024-12-21 17:55:00
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