TikTok ban: China attacks ‘bandit logic’ of House vote
China has strongly opposed a bill under consideration by Congress that could lead to the ban of TikTok in the US, alleging it behaves unfairly like a “bandit.”
The bill, approved by the House of Representatives, demands TikTok’s parent company to divest within six months or risk the app’s prohibition.
Although the bill’s fate in the Senate remains uncertain, President Joe Biden has expressed readiness to endorse it upon Congressional approval.
Beijing has pledged to take necessary actions to safeguard its interests. TikTok, owned by Chinese corporation ByteDance, headquartered in Beijing but registered in the Cayman Islands, has faced scrutiny from US lawmakers who perceive potential national security risks due to American data possibly falling into Chinese hands.
TikTok’s owners have refuted these allegations. In a rare display of bipartisan support, the House overwhelmingly passed the bill, with 352 representatives in favor and 65 against. Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin, at a press briefing in Beijing, criticized the bill’s vote, arguing it contradicts principles of fair competition and justice.
“When someone sees a good thing another person has and tries to take it for themselves, this is entirely the logic of a bandit,” Mr Wang added.
Another Chinese official, commerce ministry spokesperson He Yadong, said that China would “take all necessary measures to safeguard its legitimate rights and interests”.
Meanwhile, former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Thursday that he was putting together a team of investors to make a bid to buy TikTok. “It’s a great business,” he told CNBC.
Whether he gets the chance will depend on the bill passing Congress and it is unclear whether it has enough support in the Senate.
Republican Donald Trump has said he is now opposed, having previously backed a ban.
After its passage in the House, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew said that the bill would take “billions of dollars out of the pockets of creators and small businesses”.
“It will also put more than 300,000 American jobs at risk and it will take away your TikTok,” Mr Chew said in a video posted on TikTok and X, formerly known as Twitter.
On Wednesday, several TikTok “creators” told the BBC they feared for their livelihood and businesses if the bill becomes a law.
“I buy items from small businesses and showcase them on my platform – I enhance them,” said Ophelia Nichols, an Alabama-based creator with more than 12m followers on the platform. “It’s the small businesses that will suffer…you have to worry about that.”
TikTok’s Mr Chew also urged its users to speak out against the vote and contact their lawmakers – an effort that has already seen the offices of some members of Congress inundated with calls from angry constituents.
The approach has irked US lawmakers. One of the bill’s co-sponsors, Texas Republican Chip Roy, told the BBC in an interview that he believes TikTok “shot itself in the foot” with the lobbying effort.
“[That is] demonstrating that they want to use the power of their technology to persuade people and inform them through their viewpoint,” he said, adding that the effort amounted to “the propaganda angle that we’re seeing out of TikTok.”
TikTok is banned in China along with other social media platforms.
Instead, Chinese users use a similar app, Douyin, which is only available in China and subject to monitoring and censorship by the government.
