TON Sends Open Letter to France Calling for Release of Pavel Durov

French President Emmanuel Macron has been widely criticized by tech executives including Elon Musk and Rumble CEO Chris Pavlovsky.

TON Sends Open Letter to France Calling for Release of Pavel Durov

The Open Network, an independent organization representing the TON community, has issued an open letter to French authorities calling for the immediate release of Telegram founder Pavel Durov following his arrest at Le Bourget Airport on August 24.

TON’s letter condemns the arrest of the Telegram founder as a “direct assault on a fundamental human right” and a violation of freedom of expression principles.

The letter also urges social media and other tech companies to resist pressure from government censorship and other forms of information blocking against their users. TON also stresses that Telegram’s content moderation policies are in line with the EU regulatory framework, including the Digital Services Act.

French authorities extend Durov’s detention until August 28

Despite growing calls for Durov’s release, French authorities have announced that they will extend his detention until August 28 as part of an ongoing investigation into alleged illegal use of the Telegram platform.