13/3/24, 13:44 Oversight Board | Independent Judgment. Transparency. Legitimacy. The connection between the right of access to information, including for victims of human rights violations, has also been emphasized by the mandate holder (Report A/68/362, para. 92 (2013)). Some of the most important journalism in conflict situations has included sharing information and imagery of prisoners of war. Eyewitness accounts of detainees following the liberation of Nazi concentration camps in 1945, as well as in Omarska camp in Bosnia in 1992, were crucial in galvanizing global opinion regarding the horrors of these wars and the atrocities committed. Similarly, widely circulated images of detainee abuse at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq in 2004 led to public condemnation and several prosecutions for these abuses. Where restrictions on expression are imposed by a state, they must meet the requirements of legality, legitimate aim, and necessity and proportionality (Article 19, para. 3, ICCPR). These requirements are often referred to as the “three-part test.” The Board uses this framework to interpret Meta’s human rights responsibilities, which include the responsibility to respect freedom of expression. As the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression has stated, although "companies do not have the obligations of Governments, their impact is of a sort that requires them to assess the same kind of questions about protecting their users' right to freedom of expression" (report A/74/486, para. 41). I. Legality (clarity and accessibility of the rules) The principle of legality under international human rights law requires rules that limit expression to be clear and publicly accessible (General Comment No.34, para. 25). Rules restricting expression "may not confer unfettered discretion for the restriction of freedom of expression on those charged with [their] execution" and "provide sufficient guidance to those charged with their execution to enable them to ascertain what sorts of expression are properly restricted and what sorts are not" (Ibid). Applied to rules that govern online speech, the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression has said they should be clear and specific ( A/HRC/38/35, para. 46). People using Meta’s platforms should be able to access and understand the rules, and content reviewers should have clear guidance on their enforcement. The Board finds that Meta’s rule prohibiting content which reveals the identity of prisoners of war is sufficiently clear to govern the content in this case, as is the potential for Meta’s Content Policy Team to exceptionally leave up content that would otherwise violate this rule where the public interest requires it. The policy lines for applying a “mark as disturbing” screen to graphic https://www.oversightboard.com/decision/FB-YLRV35WD/ 19/26