OFFICERS IN CHARGE of the PSNI’s West Belfast Facebook page have removed some sectarian and illegal posts over the past 24 hours with a view to prosecute the authors.
In a status update this morning, the officers warned that sectarian posting and incitement is illegal. ”We have seized some of these posts from yesterday with a view to prosecution.”
They also asked other users to report unacceptable behaviour and posts by the “immature minority” via direct message or email.
Otherwise we will have no option but to deactivate the wall posts. This is your page, but we cannot allow behaviour such as over the last 24 hours.
The station said it was keen to continue to provide a forum for people in the community. The page has almost 6,500 followers.
The central PSNI press office said that it would continue to communicate with locals through Facebook as a “few irresponsible people will not spoil what we have for many others”.
“The West Belfast Facebook pages have the largest number of young followers out of all of the PSNI sites. This is fantastic in an area where young people in particular recognise a way that local officers can link in with the community faster than ever before keeping them informed with timely, relevant information,” it said.
Most unfortunately it seems that a very small number of people have been posting inappropriate messages. The messages have since been removed and the content will be examined to assess if any legislation has been breached. It is important to remember posting inappropriate comments on social media networks may be against the law.
Earlier this year, two men were convicted and fined for posting anti-Catholic messages on Facebook.
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