The implications of the Arabic case for Bangla content moderation on Facebook: future considerations for combating ‘Bangla’ hate speech

ABSTRACT

This article examines the shortcomings of Meta (formerly the Facebook company) in Bangla content moderation on the Facebook app. Although there has been progress in the moderation of Bangla content since 2020, there are concerns that the moderation continues to be widely inaccurate, which can have significant ramifications for freedom of expression and ethno-religious conflict. This research expands upon prior studies to analyse Meta’s challenges with moderating Arabic content, identify possible factors contributing to moderation errors and highlight shortcomings in moderating the Bangla language. Much like Arabic, Bangla (alternatively referred to as Bengali) is a language that is utilised in diverse markets characterised by ethno-religious and linguistic variations. Considering the existing knowledge on Meta’s Arabic configuration and the information at hand regarding the moderation of Bangla content, this article presents several concerns. Among them is the possibility that ethno-linguistic factors originating from West Bengal may exert an unbalanced influence on the moderation of Bangla content. This article proposes recommendations for future deliberations on how to adequately address the problem of hate speech in the Bangla language on Facebook, while also emphasising the need for specific further research.

KEYWORDS:

• Meta
• content moderation
• contextual diversity
• artificial intelligence
• human reviewers
• Bangladesh

Acknowledgement

The present research is being conducted as a part of the Bangladesh Tech Policy Fellowship 2022, which was granted by Digitally Right Ltd (DRL) to support research and training on technology-related policies. The papers developed during the fellowship have been archived by DRL, but the authors retain their copyright. Victoire Rio, a Visiting Research Fellow at the School of Public Policy of the Chiang Mai University, Thailand, and an affiliate at the Southeast Asia Center for Digital Futures, significantly contributed to this research by engaging in useful discussions regarding the Facebook papers and meticulously reviewing multiple drafts of the present manuscript. A special acknowledgement is due to Miraj Chowdhury, the Founder of DRL, and Dr. Md. Ershadul Karim, Associate Professor, Faculty of Law, University of Malaya, Malaysia, for providing valuable feedback on an earlier version of this article. The author expresses gratitude towards the staff at the DRL, particularly Tasmiah Juthi, former Program Coordinator, DRL, for providing technical support and facilities throughout the research. Last but not least, the key informants who participated in the research and Akhlak-Ul-Islam Tusar, who assisted me in data analysis, deserve special thanks for sharing their valuable insights.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 UN General Assembly, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 10 December 1948, 217 A (III).

2 UN General Assembly, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 16 December 1966, United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 999.

3 The largest Bangla-speaking population outside Bangladesh resides in various Indian states, including West Bengal, Odisha, Tripura, Bihar and Assam, with more than 106 million speakers.

4 North Bengal dialects, such as Dinajpur, Rajshahi, Bogra and Pabna, are included in this category.

5 East Bengal dialects comprise a) Dhaka, Mymensingh, Tripura, Barisal and Sylhet dialects and b) Faridpur, Jessore, and Khulna dialects.

6 Rajbanshi, the dialect of Rangpur.

7 South Bengal dialects, including Chittagong and Noakhali, as well as Chittagong Hill Tracts dialects.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Mohammad Pizuar Hossain

Mohammad Pizuar Hossain is currently a Senior Lecturer in Law at the Department of Law of East West University in Dhaka, Bangladesh. He provides pro bono professional support for the victims of human rights violations as a Consultant of the Bangladesh Office of Asia Justice and Rights (AJAR), Jakarta, Indonesia, and as a Legal Researcher of the Edinburgh International Justice Initiative (EIJI), Scotland, the United Kingdom. He also offers expert advice for various research projects undertaken by Digitally Right in Bangladesh. His research interests lie at the crossroads of international law, criminology, human rights, cybercrimes and cyber security, genocide studies and constitutional law. He has published articles in many journals, including Holocaust and Genocide Studies, International Annals of Criminology, International Journal of Human Rights, Commonwealth Law Bulletin, Journal of Parliamentary and Political Law, Asia Pacific Journal of Environmental Law, Australian Journal of Asian Law, and Asian Journal of Legal Studies.