Human rights lawyer Maina Kiai has been appointed by the global tech giant Facebook to join its oversight board.
Mr Kiai who is currently serving as the director of Global Alliances and Partnerships at Human Rights Watch has been named among 20 experts who will independently make decisions on content on Facebook and Instagram that may need to be taken down.
His appointment is significance highlight of Facebook’s seriousness with the kenyan market as the represents new way of content moderation. Kenya Human Rights Commission Fears
The board that comprises of 20 members, 4 co-chairs and 16 board members from different areas across the world. Picked from across the world, the board’s key role will be to review whether content is consistent with Facebook and Instagram’s policies and values, as well as a commitment to upholding freedom of expression within the framework of international norms of human rights.
Board members are picked from legal, journalism, academic and human rights backgrounds.
Kiai is one of three members picked from the African continent to join the board whose number is expected to grow to 40 members.
“Our financial independence is also guaranteed by the establishment of a $130 million (Sh13 billion) trust fund that is completely independent of Facebook, which will fund our operations and cannot be revoked,” read pard of the company’s statement.
Formation of the oversight board comes after serious criticism by regulators across the world on Facebook’s role in curbing the spread of disinformation and extremist ideology on its platforms which also include WhatsApp and Instagram.
Later in the year users will be able to appeal to the board incase Facebook removes their content but in the following months facebook will review appeals from users who wants their content taken down.
Apart from Kiai other members of Facebook’s board include Sdhir Krishnaswamy, former PM of Denmark , Michael McConnell, director of the Constitutional Law Center at Stanford Law School and a former judge of the US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Tawakkol Karman from Yemen, Alan Rusbridger, former editor in chief of The Guardian, and Emi Palmor, former director general of the Israeli ministry of justice among others.
