Maduro makes WhatsApp his newest enemy

Tuesday, August 6th 2024 - 10:14 UTC

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The messaging app is used to spread fascist content, Maduro argued

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said Monday that the instant-message application WhatsApp needed to “get out” of his country because it was a tool “used by fascist groups” to launch threats. He made those remarks days after questioning the “unregulated” operations of Instagram and TikTok.

“I am going to break relations with WhatsApp because they are using it to threaten Venezuela. And then I am going to delete my WhatsApp from my phone. I would gradually move my contacts to Telegram,” he argued from outside the Miraflores Palace. “WhatsApp out of Venezuela because there the criminals threaten the youth, the popular leaders,” he insisted.

“Through WhatsApp, they are threatening the Venezuelan military family, the officialdom. Through WhatsApp, they are threatening anyone who does not speak out in favor of fascism,” Maduro also maintained during a pro-government event. He also invited the population to undertake a “voluntary, progressive and radical” withdrawal of the application, owned by US company Meta along with other social networks such as Facebook or Instagram.

“And to WhatsApp we say: WhatsApp, go to hell! Stop threatening Venezuelan men and women. Because it is used by criminals. Criminals have Colombian, Chilean, and gringo chips,” Maduro also claimed.

On Sunday, Maduro stressed that social networks were used to promote “division” among Venezuelans and mentioned Instagram and TikTok, which he found to be “multipliers of hate and fascism.”

“I accuse Instagram of its responsibility in the installation of hatred to divide Venezuelans, to seek a slaughter and a division of Venezuela, to bring fascism to Venezuela,” he assured while requesting “recommendations” in this regard from his security team to regulate social platforms in which images and videos of the protests against his reelection were disseminated in addition to denunciations about the repression leading to over 2,000 arrests.

Venezuela's National Electoral Council (CNE) said Maduro had been reelected with around 52% of the vote against Edmundo González Urrutia's 43%. But the opposition cried “fraud” and is challenging these results.

In line with Maduro's speech, Diosdado Cabello, vice-president of the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) said: “We will go back to the stone age, if we don't have to use WhatsApp or TikTok, well, we won't use it, but here they are not going to overthrow the government using social networks.”