A coalition of human rights activists and civil society organisations on Wednesday voiced their strong opposition to the ongoing interference with social media platforms and network outages across the nation, calling for an immediate end to these restrictions.
Since February 17, access to various online platforms has been severely limited in numerous parts of Pakistan. This began following allegations by former Rawalpindi commissioner Liaquat Chattha, who claimed the chief election commissioner and chief justice of Pakistan played roles in manipulating the results of the general elections held on February 8. Notably, similar interruptions in online access were reported during the elections themselves.
Today, these groups released a statement highlighting their deep concerns about the growing frequency of internet and social media blockages. They argued that such measures not only violate the fundamental rights to freedom of expression and access to information but also create a worrying trend of stifling legitimate political discussion and the diversity of opinions within the country.Civil society organisations on Wednesday
“The arbitrary blocking of platforms, including the prolonged and unannounced disruption of ‘X’ (formerly known as Twitter), is a sobering illustration of growing digital censorship in the country.
“Such actions not only silence diverse political voices but also create an environment which contributes to the spread of misinformation. Today, digital platforms play a pivotal role in shaping public discourse, and ensuring the free flow of information, through these digital mediums, is imperative for an informed society and fair electoral processes.
“The suppression of digital platforms, especially when initiated without transparency, often lacks adherence to due legal process and thus, undermines Pakistan’s international law commitments,” the statement reads.
It also criticised the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) for its inaction over the matter, saying the authority’s complete silence was “extremely alarming” as it had “failed to furnish any reasons for its actions and exceeded its mandate to block an entire internet platform”.
The statement said the absence of transparency in the decision-making processes surrounding network shutdowns and platform blocking, and the “complete disregard for any accountability” had resulted in an “obvious erosion of trust between the state and its citizens”.
“We are also dismayed by reports of throttling of VPNs (virtual private networks), undermining people’s access to information and right to privacy.”
The civil society collective called on the government to take immediate action to “reverse the course of digital censorship” in the country such as the following steps:
- Immediately unblock X in Pakistan.
- Repeal sections of the law, such as Section 37 of Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, that enable censorship and violate Article 19 (right to freedom of speech and press freedom) and Article 19-A (right of access to information).
- Act with transparency on decisions that impact the free use of the internet, including for political and economic purposes.
- Issue statement of clarification, outlining the reasons and legal basis for the recent blocking of X and other affected platforms.
- Avoid future actions that obstruct the free flow of information and adversely affect political discourse within the country, and take back all legislative proposals expanding control and censorship over the internet, including that the e-safety bill from the previous government’s tenure should not be revived.
- Abide by Pakistan’s commitments to uphold freedom of expression and right to access to information under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
“We urge the incoming government, regulators and other public bodies to recognise that any action that affects the flow of information and limits citizen’s ability to express themselves, has a direct and lingering impact on citizen’s human rights, including the right to political participation,” the statement concluded.
Signatories to the statement included digital campaigning group Bolo Bhi, Media Matters for Democracy, Human Rights Watch, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Aurat March Lahore, Pakistan Digital Editors Alliance and several activists and journalists.
More recently, the high courts have also put the PTA on notice regarding the restricted access to social media platforms.
‘Categorically’ against censorship, need to protect state as well: information minister
Meanwhile, Information Minister Ataullah Tarar said he was “categorically” accepting that he was against censorship. However, he pointed out that the government also needed to protect the state.
“I am against censorship,” Tarar said in an interview.
He said that people abroad were trying to spread anarchy in Pakistan.
“Their daily efforts are to not let the stock exchange grow [and] to scare the foreign investors that Pakistan is defaulting,” Tarar said, adding that Pakistan had to move beyond these issues.
He said that the issue regarding censorship would be discussed on the government level which would try and achieve a balance that did not compromise freedom of expression while also protecting the state’s interests.
“We have to achieve the middle ground,” Tarar said.
