FINE GAEL has defended its decision to delete comments being posted to the Wall of its official Facebook page, after hundreds of users took to the site to protest the party’s position on gay marriage.
The party has come under attack in recent days after repeated assertions by Dublin South East candidate Lucinda Creighton, who said her opposition to full gay marriage – in contrast to her support of the Civil Partnership Bill – was in line with the party’s own policies.
Hundreds of users have registered their disgust on the Fine Gael page, with a sustained wave of comments being posted on its Wall this evening – only for some of the comments to then be deleted by its administrators, prompting some to claim that their opinions were being ‘censored’.
This evening a spokesman said there was a “very straightforward explanation” for the moderation policy on the Facebook page – and insisted that only “abusive comments” were being removed, in line with the policy of the group that manages the Fine Gael page.
“It’s the policy that, when it becomes apparent there’s a coordinated attack from – very obviously – the same sources, given it’s a forum for open discussion, we consciously free up space for other people to have their say.”
Comments which raised issue with the party’s policies on any matter, the spokesman added, would “absolutely” be left online if they were not deemed abusive.
Have you had a comment removed from the Fine Gael Facebook page? Do you believe the party is acting fairly, or is being discriminatory? Have your say in the comments field below.
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