Australia's efforts to restrict access to a violent video depicting a stabbing incident in a church have escalated into an international dispute involving the Australian government and Elon Musk, the wealthy American behind the social media platform X.
During a live-streamed service at an Assyrian Orthodox Church in Sydney on April 15, a bishop was viciously attacked at the altar, resulting in four individuals being stabbed and a teenager being taken into custody. Subsequently, a 16-year-old boy was charged with a terrorism-related offense, as reported by VOA.
Following the circulation of videos depicting the stabbing on various social media platforms, the Australian eSafety commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, directed Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, as well as X (formerly Twitter), to remove the footage. Failure to comply with these directives would result in significant fines being imposed on the tech companies.
On April 16, a police forensic officer was seen working at the crime scene at the Christ the Good Shepherd church in suburban Wakely, western Sydney, Australia.
The videos were categorized as 'class 1' material under Australian law, depicting explicit and offensive violence.
Meta complied with the eSafety Commissioner's order, but X has argued that the directive falls outside the scope of Australian law.
It has strongly emphasized that "global takedown orders... pose a threat to freedom of speech worldwide."
According to VOA, On Monday, the confrontation between Canberra and Musk escalated as an Australian court instructed X to temporarily conceal the videos. The Australian government seeks permanent removal of the footage.
Musk expressed concerns, stating that "if ANY country is allowed to censor content for ALL countries, what is to stop any country from controlling the entire Internet?"
In an unusual display of unity, politicians from various political backgrounds in Australia condemned Musk's stance on the video.
Government minister Tanya Plibersek referred to him as an "egotistical billionaire," while Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young called him a "narcissistic cowboy."
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese criticized Musk, stating that he lacked decency.
"We will take the necessary steps to confront this arrogant billionaire who believes he is above the law and common decency. The fact that someone would go to court to defend the right to share violent content on a platform demonstrates how out of touch Mr. Musk is," Albanese said. "Social media must bear social responsibility. Mr. Musk is failing to do so."
Investigators believe that the stabbing attack at a church in Sydney was an act of terrorism motivated by religion. Regulators are concerned that social media could exacerbate tensions between different faiths.
Serious disturbances occurred outside the Assyrian Orthodox Church following the stabbing of the bishop and three other individuals. Fortunately, none of them sustained life-threatening injuries.
The church stabbings took place just two days after a lone knifeman killed six people in a separate attack at a shopping center in Sydney.
The extent of Australian laws will be put to the test through the ongoing debate surrounding the global availability of video footage depicting the church attack.
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