An online petition signed so far by 5,175 people is calling on Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg not to allow his company to share user data with the Bangladesh government.
The petition on Change.Org claimed that the government decision to block Facebook amounted to stifling freedom of speech in the country.
The authors of the petition, Human Rights Activists of Bangladesh, alleged that the Awami League government intended to “collect personal information about users who are opposing [them], leading to arresting and torturing [opposition] activists and their family members.”
Petitioners shared their reasons for signing the document in the comments section, with many expressing concern that basic freedoms were under fire.
One petitioner wrote: “Our government … acts like an insecure girlfriend who thinks her boyfriend is cheating on her.”
Extolling the merits of social media, the petition said: “Thanks to Facebook, we were at least able to know the facts, speak our minds, and inform others.”
Around 18 million Facebook users in Bangladesh have been without the services of the social networking site since the Supreme Court rejected review petitions by war criminals SQ Chowdhury and Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujahid on November 18.
Citing security reasons, the government also blocked social networking platforms Whatsapp and Viber.