Mexico Rules Out Banning TikTok

The China-based social media TikTok is expected to operate normally in Mexico, despite some security concerns the platform has raised in the US. According to the Mexican government, there is no basis to ban the platform as it could be interpreted as a violation to the freedom of speech right. 

During his morning conference, President López Obrador said that his government would not ban the Chinese app for government officials. The statement comes after several western countries like the US, Canada, France and the UK announced that government employees cannot use the app on their phones or any digital device that they use for official purposes. These governments argue that the social network could allow spying activities, benefiting the Chinese government. 

“Here (in Mexico) we do not forbid anything. We have no worries about that (TikTok) and we guarantee freedom of thought and expression. It is forbidden to forbid,” said President López Obrador. 

This is not the first time López Obrador has commented on social media matters. In November 2022, Elon Musk, CEO, Twitter, launched a 24-hour poll on Twitter after which former US President Donald Trump was reinstated on the social media platform. López Obrador had previously criticized Twitter's decision to ban Trump from its platform. In late October 2022, as Musk took over Twitter, the Mexican leader urged the billionaire to repair the damage caused by Trump’s account cancellation.  

Last week, Shou Zi Chew, CEO, TikTok, faced a grilling by congress people from the US House of Representatives. US officials are worried that, given that TikTok is owned by ByteDance, one of the largest technology companies in Asia, the Chinese Communist Party could have access to the data US citizens share with the app. The US government is trying to pressure ByteDance to sell its shares to a US-based firm. 

In Mexico, there are more than 57 million active TikTok accounts, according to the social media agency We Are Social. TikTok is the third most used social media in the country, with over 14.1% of the social media users. TikTok is also widely used by Mexican politicians, especially by members of the ruling party Morena, like the Minister of Foreign affairs Marcelo Ebrard, with more than 1 million followers on the platform. Similarly, Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum has over 870,000 followers on Tiktok, as well as the former President of the Supreme Court, Arturo Saldivar, has more than 560,000 followers. Mexican Politicians use Tiktok to connect with younger audiences and to inform about their duties.