Facebook legislation stirs controversy in parliament

CAIRO - 1 May 2017: A draft law which proposes teaching pupils how to use Facebook and other social media will soon be submitted to the Egyptian parliament.

“The inappropriate usage of Facebook in Egypt should be faced by education and legislation,” Parliamentarian Mohamed el-Komy said Monday, pointing out that social media ignited “crimes and extremism” in society.

Komy stressed the importance of confronting the damage social media can cause by educating children on the disadvantages of such means of communication at school.

Parliamentarian Riyad Abdel Sattar, however, went so far as to demanded shutting down Facebook across the nation and establishing a local social media website instead, following in China’s footsteps.

On Tuesday, Abdel Sattar will submit a draft law imposing restrictions on Facebook, based on the Chinese experience, which he said aims to protect national security.

“We come across pages inciting against the police, the army and governmental institutions every day,” Abdel Sattar told Extra News Channel Monday, stressing the need to establish a database of Facebook users in Egypt to hold them accountable by law.