By Micheal Chukwuebuka, Reporting
The prime minister of Albania said the government will shut down TikTok for one year, claiming the video service incites violence and bullying, especially among children.
Stonix News reports that authorities in Albanian held precisely 1,300 meetings with teachers and parents after a teenager, mid-November, was stabbed to death by another teenager after a quarrel that started on TikTok.
While speaking at a meeting with teachers and parents, Prime Minister Edi Rama said TikTok would be fully closed for all, adding that there will be no TikTok in the Republic of Albania.
The shutdown would begin sometime next year, according to Rama.
In an email response on the case of the stabbed teenager, TikTok said it had “found no evidence that the perpetrator or victim had TikTok accounts, and multiple reports have in fact confirmed videos leading up to this incident were being posted on another platform, not TikTok.”
According to ABC13, Albanian children comprise the largest group of TikTok users in the country.
There has been increasing concern from Albanian parents after reports of children taking knives and other objects to school to use in quarrels or cases of bullying promoted by stories they see on TikTok.
According to Rama, TikTok’s operations in China, where its parent company is based, are different, “promoting how to better study, how to preserve nature and so on.”
Authorities have set up a series of protective measures at schools, starting with an increased police presence, training programs and closer cooperation with parents.
Rama said Albania would follow how the company and other countries react to the one-year shutdown before deciding whether to allow the company to resume operations in Albania.
However, report reaching Stonix News says that not everyone is in agreement with Rama’s decision to close TikTok.
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