Albania bans TikTok for a year after killing of teenager

Tirana
Reuters
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Albania announced on Saturday a one-year ban on TikTok, the popular short video app, following the killing of a teenager last month that raised fears about social media’s influence on children.

The ban, which is part of a wider plan to make schools safer, will take effect early next year, Prime Minister Edi Rama said after a meeting with parents’ groups and teachers from across the country.

“For one year we will completely shut it down for everyone. There will be no TikTok in Albania,” Rama said.

Several European countries, including France, Germany and Belgium, have enforced restrictions on children’s use of social media. In one of the world’s toughest regulations targeting Big Tech, in November Australia approved a complete ban on social media for children under 16.

Rama has blamed social media and especially TikTok for fueling violence among young people in and out of school.

His government’s decision comes after a 14-year-old schoolboy was stabbed to death in November by a fellow student. Local media had reported that the incident followed arguments between the two boys on social media. Videos had also appeared on TikTok of minors supporting the killing.

“The problem today is not our children, the problem today is us, the problem today is our society, the problem today is TikTok and all the others who are taking our children hostage,” Rama said.

TikTok said it was seeking “quick clarity” from the Albanian government.

“We found no evidence that the perpetrator or the victim had TikTok accounts, and indeed multiple reports have confirmed that videos leading up to this incident were posted on a platform other than TikTok,” a company spokesperson said.