Case of Telegram founder Durov raises human rights concerns: UN

UN expresses concerns over arrest of Telegram founder Pavel Durov, highlighting human rights issues and freedom of speech.

The arrest and charging of Telegram founder Pavel Durov is a complex case which raises a lot of human rights concerns, the United Nations said Tuesday (September 3, 2024).

The Russian-born chief of the popular but controversial messaging app was sensationally detained at Le Bourget airport outside Paris on August 24 and then charged with a litany of violations related to the messaging app.

He was also banned from leaving France.

Numerous questions have been raised about the timing and circumstances of Durov's detention, with supporters seeing the 39-year-old as a freedom of speech champion and detractors as a menace who wilfully allowed Telegram to get out of control.

"This is a very complex case. It raises a lot of human rights concerns," said Ravina Shamdasani, a spokeswoman for the UN Human Rights Office.

She told a media briefing that the Geneva-based agency was considering publishing a paper setting out "the parameters within which these situations should be looked at".

She also cited the recent blocking of X in Brazil, where the country's supreme court on Monday ratified the decision by one of its judges to suspend the social media platform for alleged judicial transgressions.