As reported by Asian Correspondent on 29 August 2018, Facebook decided to
remove 18 accounts and 52 pages with links to Burma"s key military officers due to their treatment of the Rohingya community. A
statement from Facebook on 27 August 2018 said they did this "to prevent them from using our service to further inflame ethnic and religious tensions". This move comes as the UN published a
report calling for six military leaders to face genocide charges, as reported by BBC News on 27 August 2018. The United States also
announced the publication of a report with similar findings, according to The Irrawaddy on 30 August 2018.
Thomas Muller, persecution analyst at World Watch Research, comments: "The public disgrace for the generals was probably worse than the actual Facebook ban since the generals were reportedly soon back online using the Russian Facebook equivalent "˜VKontakte". NGO voices have also pointed out that the situation in Christian majority Kachin State may also amount to
crimes against humanity (Fortify Rights, 30 August 2018). Although some permanent members of the UN Security Council (such as China and Russia) may save the generals from the disgrace of actually having to stand trial, the report entitled "˜
They block everything - Avoidable deprivations in humanitarian aid to ethnic civilians displaced by war in Kachin State, Myanmar" serves to raise international awareness of the current situation for ethnic and religious minorities in Myanmar, including that of Christians."
