Venezuela Bans Tik Tok Ahead of Presidential Inauguration

NGOs have denounced Tik Tok and VPN ban in Venezuela hours before presidential Inauguration

Just before the US implemented a law that would see Tik Tok cease operations in the country by January of 2025, Venezuela has gone ahead and banned Tik Tok.

This ban follows a ‘deadly’ Tik Tok challenge that allegedly led to the death of three minors, according to Venezuelan media outlets.

Tik Tok was fined about $10 million by the Venezuelan Supreme Court of Justice for not imposing proper safety standards to protect minors.

Even though there has never been official communication with regards to the ban, Venezuelan users of the social media app report issues with accessing their accounts.

According to posts on X and Instagram, Tik Tok users in Venezuela were initially only able to access their accounts via VPNs.

Then as the last nail on the coffin, the Venezuelan authorities have now reportedly blocked various VPN websites.

The court ruling was issued on Dec. 31, and Tik Tok was given a period of eight days to respond. The Chinese company that operates the app, however, neither responded nor paid the fine, leading to the ban.

Presidential Inauguration

This ban comes at a time Venezuela is going through a significant political crisis that has also greatly ruined the country’s economy.

The nation is actually set to inaugurate their president today Friday Jan.10. There are however two people claiming to be the country’s rightful president.

Even though the Venezuelan electoral body declared incumbent Nicholas Maduro as the winner, opposition leader Edmundo González Urrutia also claims to be the rightful winner and insists on attending the ceremony.

Edmundo has been in exile in Spain and has faced threats of arrest by the Venezuelan authorities once he lands in the country.

Maduro has faced criticism all over the world and has been called out by various world leaders to step down.

Tik Tok Ban In The US

There is a Tik Tok ban looming in the US on Jan. 19, if the US supreme court does not step in to save the video app.

Last year, the US Congress ruled that the app would face a ban in the country if Tik Tok’s Chinese-owned parent company ByteDance does not divest from the app.

President Donald Trump however advised the supreme court to put a hold on the ban and ‘showed’ support for Tik Tok.

ByteDance argues that the law passed by the Congress violates free speech protection and is unwilling to comply with the Congress’ demands.

The US Supreme Court is set to hold a special sitting today Friday Jan.10 to decide the fate of Tik Tok.