Marc Andreessen ‘colonialism in India’ tweet upsets Mark Zuckerberg; Marc tweets apology
Andreessen has also apologised for the remarks saying, “Last night on Twitter, I made an ill-informed and ill-advised comment about Indian politics and economics. To be clear, I am 100% opposed to colonialism, and 100% in favor of independence and freedom, in every country, including India.
Marc Andreessen, a Silicon Valley venture capitalist and board member of the social network Facebook,slipped in a tweet war and compared Free Basics to colonialism and suggesting that Indians were heading for economic disaster by banning it.
Mark Zuckerberg is not at all happy with Marc Andreessen’s comment and has personally responded to the remarks.
In his poston Facebook, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Andreessen’s views do not represent that of Facebook and that he was ‘deeply upset’ by his remarks.
“I want to respond to Marc Andreessen’s comments about India yesterday. I found the comments deeply upsetting, and they do not represent the way Facebook or I think at all. India has been personally important to me and Facebook. Early on in my thinking about our mission, I traveled to India and was inspired by the humanity, spirit and values of the people. It solidified my understanding that when all people have the power to share their experiences, the entire world will make progress.”
“Facebook stands for helping to connect people and giving them voice to shape their own future. But to shape the future we need to understand the past. As our community in India has grown, I’ve gained a deeper appreciation for the need to understand India’s history and culture. I’ve been inspired by how much progress India has made in building a strong nation and the largest democracy in the world, and I look forward to strengthening my connection to the country,” Zuckerberg said.
Andreessen has also apologised for the remarks saying, “Last night on Twitter, I made an ill-informed and ill-advised comment about Indian politics and economics. To be clear, I am 100% opposed to colonialism, and 100% in favor of independence and freedom, in every country, including India. I am a huge admirer of the nation of India and the Indian people, who have been nothing but kind and generous to me for many years. I apologize for any offense my comment caused, and withdraw it in full and without reservation. I will leave all future commentary on all of these topics to people with more knowledge and experience than me.”
Andreessen, who tweeted at @pmarca, had this to say about the whole TRAI order and Free Basics ban: “Anti-colonialism has been catastrophic for the Indian people for decades. Why stop now.”
The Venture capitalist later deleted his tweet, and said that he was withdrawing himself “from all future discussions of Indian economics or politics.” He added that he was “opposed to colonialism, in any country.”
But for Andreessen, the apology if one can call it that, came a tad too late and had deleted the twee
