Facebook has blocked the live stream of a man in France suffering from an incurable ailment who planned to broadcast his death, Agence France-Press reported.
Alain Cocq announced on Facebook on Saturday he was now refusing all food, drink and medicine after French President Emmanuel Macron turned down his request for euthanasia.
Cocq, 57, has been suffering from a rare degenerative disease for 34 years that causes the walls of his arteries to stick together. He said he believed he would die in less than a week and would broadcast his death from Saturday morning from his home in Dijon, northeast France.
“The road to deliverance begins and believe me, I am happy,” he wrote in a post announcing he had “finished his last meal”.
“I know the days ahead are going to be difficult, but I have made my decision and I am calm,” he added.
Facebook has been increasingly criticised over the way it polices the content it carries and said later on Saturday its rules did not allow it to show suicide.
“Although we respect [Cocq’s] decision to want to draw attention to this complex question, following expert advice we have taken measures to prevent the live broadcast on Alain’s account,” a Facebook spokesman said.
“Our rules do not allow us to show suicide attempts.”
Call to supporters
Cocq had been trying to post another video earlier on Saturday when he messaged: “Facebook is blocking my video broadcast until September 8.
“It is up to you now,” he said in a message to supporters before giving out Facebook’s French address “so you can let them know what you think about their methods of restricting free speech”.
“There will be a back-up within 24 hours” to run the video, he added.
His condition has caused brain aneurysms, and he experiences convulsions if he does not take his medicine. He has said he experiences constant pain. He was fed by a drip and his digestive system is connected to a colostomy bag.
