Facebook has extended its ban of former US President Donald Trump for two years from 7 January this year. The social media platform also unveiled a new penalty system for public figures, including world leaders, following criticism from its Oversight Board.
At the end of Trump’s ban period, Facebook said it would consult experts and evaluate if lifting his suspension would threaten public safety. The controversial former president was first suspended and effectively banned from the platform when he overtly supported insurrectionists who stormed and attacked the US Capitol.
If Facebook restores Trump’s account in 2023, it would probably coincide with the beginning of the campaigning period for the next US presidential election slated in 2024. The businessman, who rose to political prominence largely through social media, has strongly hinted that he intends to run in that election.
Earlier this year, Facebook’s Oversight Board agreed with the platform’s banning of Trump, but criticised the company for not imposing penalties consistently. Now, the firm has announced a penalty system of one-month, six-month, one-year, and two-year suspensions for violators.
Due to his conduct, Trump is being slapped with the “highest penalty available under the new enforcement protocols.” The former president is predictably furious at the company’s decision, calling it an insult to his voters and repeating his debunked claim that the 2020 US Presidential Election was rigged.
“Next time I’m in the White House there will be no more dinners, at his request, with Mark Zuckerberg and his wife. It will be all business!” he said in a statement, according to Reuters.
