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- March 13, 2024
- Kainat Shakeel
- 0
ISLAMABAD: On Wednesday, civil society organizations denounced the ongoing disruption of social media platforms and nationwide network outages, calling for an expedient lifting of the ban. Since February 17, when former commissioner of Rawalpindi Liaquat Chattha charged Pakistan’s chief election commissioner and chief justice of meddling in the February 8 federal elections, access to X has been restricted in several parts of the country. During the general elections, there were likewise similar disturbances.
In a statement released today, a group of civil society organizations and human rights activists expressed their “deep concern over the increasing instances” of social media platform blocking and internet shutdowns. They claimed that these actions not only violated people’s fundamental rights to free speech and information access, but also created a “troubling precedent of throttling genuine political discourse, including plurality of voices in the country.”
“The abrupt and protracted disruption of ‘X’ (previously known as Twitter) and other arbitrary platform blockings are alarming examples of the nation’s expanding digital censorship.” Such acts not only stifle opposing political viewpoints but also foster an atmosphere that aids in the dissemination of false information. The public discourse of today is greatly influenced by digital platforms, and free information must be able to circulate freely through these channels in order for there to be an informed public and fair elections.
The statement claims that suppressing digital platforms “undermines Pakistan’s commitments to international law, especially when initiated without transparency and frequently lacks adherence to due legal process.” Additionally, it criticized the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) for its lack of response to the issue, calling the agency’s total quietness “very concerning” given that it had “exceeded its mandate to block an entire internet platform and failed to furnish any justification for its actions.”
The “obvious erosion of trust between the state and its citizens” was attributed to the statement’s “complete disregard for any accountability” and the lack of openness in the decision-making processes around network shutdowns and platform blocking. “We are also appalled by reports of VPN (virtual private network) throttling, which compromises people’s right to privacy and information access.” In order to “reverse the course of digital censorship” in the nation, the civil society collective called on the government to take the following immediate action:
- Unblock X in Pakistan right away.
- Legislation that permits censorship and violates Article 19 (right to freedom of speech and press) and Article 19-A (right of access to information) should be repealed, including Section 37 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act.
- Be open and honest when making decisions that affect the unrestricted use of the internet, particularly those that are political or commercial in nature.
- Issue a clarifying statement explaining the rationale and legal foundation behind the recent blocking of X and other impacted platforms.
- Recall all legislative plans that would increase control and censorship over the internet, including the ruling that the e-safety bill from the previous administration should not be implemented. Refrain from taking any further acts that might impede the free flow of information and negatively impact political conversation within the nation.
- Respect Pakistan’s obligations under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to protect the freedom of expression and the right to information access.
“We strongly recommend that the incoming government, regulatory agencies, and other public entities acknowledge that any measure that impedes the free exchange of information and restricts citizens’ capacity to express themselves will inevitably affect citizens’ human rights, including their right to political participation,” the statement read.
The declaration was signed by a number of journalists and activists as well as the digital campaigning group Bolo Bhi, Media Matters for Democracy, Human Rights Watch, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Aurat March Lahore, and Pakistan Digital Editors Alliance. The PTA has also received notice from the high courts about the limited access to social media platforms in more recent times.
“Categorically” opposed to censorship, but governmental protection is also necessary: minister of information Ataullah Tarar, the minister of information, declared that he was “categorically” conceding that he opposed censorship. But he also made the point that state protection was a duty of the government. “I oppose censorship,” Tarar declared during an interview on the Capital Talk program on Geo News. He claimed that anarchy was being pushed throughout Pakistan by foreigners.
In addition to scaring away international investors with the idea that Pakistan is in default, Tarar stated that Pakistan needed to get past these problems and stated that “their daily efforts are to not let the stock exchange grow.” In order to strike a balance between upholding the interests of the state and preserving the right to free speech, he suggested that the topic of censorship would be examined at the federal level. According to Tarar, “we have to find the middle ground.”