Some defenders of Telegram founder Pavel Durov have interpreted his arrest in France as an attack on freedom of expression.
Elon Musk posted “#FreePavel” on social media and predicted: “It’s 2030 in Europe and you’re going to be executed for liking a meme.”
Nick Gillespie, Editor at Reason The magazine compared Durov to Hong Kong journalist Jimmy Lai and claimed that the arrest was actually about powerful forces (he mentioned monarchies, governments and the church) worried about “letting too many people talk about too many things”.
But these breathless platitudes overlook inconvenient facts, such as statements made by French authorities regarding the charges against Durov. According to reporting by the Associated Press, Durov is accused of allowing criminal activities on his platform – namely, the trafficking of child pornography and illegal substances, fraud and organized crime.
Telegram’s lax content moderation has made it a popular digital haven for the internet’s most nefarious actors, including “terrorist organizations, drug traffickers, arms dealers and right-wing extremist groups,” according to The New York Times.
So far, the company has not responded to allegations that the platform is useful to criminals, instead dismissing it as a cost to free societies. In a statement on Sunday, Telegram said: “It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner is responsible for the misuse of that platform.”
But this is not absurd at all. When the police gather evidence that a business is repeatedly engaging in criminal activity, they hold the business owner responsible. This happens to restaurants, massage parlors, car washes and other businesses every day. Now it’s happening on the Internet too.
Durov may be a legitimate defender of free speech. Several news outlets have reported that he has refused to comply with “requests” from Russian security forces in the past. Durov’s defiance of the Kremlin deserves praise.
But that is not the case here. Durov was arrested because his platform is being used to trample on the rights of others, not to stand up for them. Publishers, even those who like to call themselves platforms, have a responsibility to prevent the victimization of others, especially children, through their technology. Durov’s arrest, however harsh, could be a step in a much-needed global reassessment of that responsibility.
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