The president of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro Moros, held responsible the representatives of the TikTok social network for Latin America for the death of two children aged 12 and 14, who were victims of the viral challenges that are reproduced through this digital platform, and gave them 72 hours to remove this type of challenges in the country.
During the broadcast of the “Con Maduro+” program number 67, the head of state ordered Minister Jorge Márquez, who is also president of Conatel, to immediately contact the representatives of TikTok and to remove all these challenges from the country
“These deaths of children fall on you, because you are the ones who spread this type of content that generates chaos and deaths. If they do not respond within 72 hours, the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela will take the most severe measures on TikTok,” expressed the national leader while questioning that these networks promote violence and lead to the murder of people, as has happened in the United States: “Through social networks they seek to destroy the future of our countries,” he condemned.
Likewise, President Maduro called for the critical conscience of parents and representatives so that from home they prevent children from joining these types of challenges, and asked teachers and community leaders to have greater vigilance: “They censor what can benefit Venezuela or humanity, but they allow these types of challenges to be reproduced.”
“On Thursday in the “Con Maduro de Repente” (Suddenly with Maduro) program, I spoke for the first time about these challenges. A girl, aged twelve, from a public high school, a school unit, died in Petare today for ingesting and following these so-called challenges,” said the head of State, and added that the girl managed to speak amidst her convulsions and mentioned having seen the challenge on TikTok.
He also reported on the death of another fourteen-year-old boy, who participated in these dangerous challenges: “Today also very early the Minister of People’s Power for Education, Héctor Rodríguez, gave me painful news, very painful, of the death of another child who participated in these challenges that are running on TikTok and that have affected several countries,” he lamented.
In this sense, he explained that these challenges have impacted various communities in Venezuela, such as Barinas, the Valles del Tuy, among others.
In his message he reiterated the urgent need to protect the country’s boys and girls, from the dangers posed by certain content on social networks, for which he called for joint action from the community and educational institutions.
