Facebook shuts down hundreds of fake accounts backing Duterte, Beijing

MANILA (The Straits Times/ANN): About 300 fake Facebook accounts, which were run by two networks in China and the Philippines and sought to burnish the reputations of President Rodrigo Duterte and Beijing, have been removed, said Facebook on Wednesday (Sept 23).

The Chinese network, comprising 155 Facebook accounts, 11 Facebook pages, nine Facebook groups and six Instagram accounts, praised Beijing's actions in the South China Sea, backed a presidential run for Duterte's daughter -- Davao City Mayor Sarah Duterte-Carpio -- and attacked an online news site that had been critical of Duterte's policies.