The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, today asked the new owner of Twitter, Elon Musk, to ensure that these rights are respected on the social network. “I ask you to ensure that human rights are put at the heart of the governance of Twitter under your leadership.” Turk wrote, in an open letter released today, expressing concern about the digital public space and the role Twitter is playing in it.
“Respect for our shared human rights should act as safeguards for the use and evolution of the platform,” explained Turk, noting that “like all businesses, Twitter needs to understand the harm associated with its platform and take steps to to remedy this.” .
The high commissioner regretted information that Elon Musk fired the entire human rights Twitter team, realizing that this “is not […] an encouraging start”.
Turk, who posted his open letter to Twitter, where he has about 25,000 followers, recalled six fundamental principles that must be respected, including freedom of expression, protecting privacy and ensuring transparency.
Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, took control of Twitter last week after buying the social network for $44 billion, immediately disbanding its board of directors, removing key staff and firing about the half of the 7,500 employees.
Source: DN
