Pakistan seeks to 'control digital media' amid protests
S. Khan Islamabad
October 28, 2020
Representatives of tech companies and human rights groups and civil society have expressed concerns over the Pakistani government's plan to access users' data and remove "objectionable" digital material. S Khan reports.
Image: Reuters
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Pakistani authorities earlier this month approved a draft policy, called the Citizens Protection (Against Online Harm) Rules 2020 or the Removal and Blocking of Unlawful Content (Procedure, Oversight and Safeguards), triggering a backlash from rights groups and tech companies.
Critics say that Prime Minister Imran Khan is seeking to control the digital space to prevent criticism against his government and the country's powerful military.
The Asia Internet Coalition, an association of leading internet and technology companies, wrote a letter to PM Khan on October 6, expressing its concern over his government's measures. The coalition includes companies like Airbnb, Amazon, Apple, Cloudflare, Expedia Group, Facebook, Google, SAP, Grab, LinkedIn, LINE, Rakuten, Twitter, Yahoo (Verizon Media) and Booking.com.
Although the AIC complained about the lack of consultation on Islamabad's digital policies, a report published by Dawn newspaper claims that the government also wants to gain access to users' data apart from forcing the companies to shift their servers to Pakistan and remove "objectionable" content within a specified time.
Pakistan's Minister for Information Technology, Syed Amin ul Haq, told DW that Pakistan is an emerging market for digital business and that the government would not do anything to hamper its growth.
"It is not true that stakeholders were not taken into confidence over the policy. We formed a committee in February to consult with all stakeholders. In September, the policy was approved by the Law and Justice Ministry, and by the Cabinet on October 6," Haq said.
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A violation of fundamental rights
"The policy seeks to remove provocative, anti-state, anti-army, anti-judiciary, obscene contents and hate materials. The companies will be required to appoint a focal person three months after the policy comes into force because we need to talk to someone if we have any complaint. Also, any company with more than 500,000 users must get itself registered with the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority," Haq explained.
Opposition parties and civil society organizations say the government's new digital policy is aimed at muzzling dissenting voices.
"We believe the government would use it to block (former prime minister) Nawaz Sharif speeches. It is alarming that the authorities are bent on violating citizens' fundamental rights," Senator Mushahid Ullah Khan, an opposition politician belonging to Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) party, told DW.
Khan said the government is signatory to many international agreements that guarantee the freedom of expression and privacy of individuals. "Does the government want to send a message to the international community that it is ready to violate these agreements? If it is the case, Pakistan will have to face consequences."
Nighat Dad, executive director of the Digital Rights Foundation, says she will stop using social media if the servers are shifted to Pakistan. "Because I won't be sure in what way my data would be used. The localization of servers is possible in countries where the data protection regime is very strong. I do not think it is the case in our country where malwares were used in 2011 to spy on people's data," she told DW.
Leading the way: Pakistan’s digital experts
The #speakup barometer team interviewed Pakistan experts in five different fields: access, digital rights, media and journalism, society, and innovation.
Image: DW/Q. Zaman
Nighat Dad
Nighat Dad is the executive director of the Digital Rights Foundation, Pakistan. She is a pioneering activist who has campaigned for access to open Internet in Pakistan and around the world. She actively engages at the policy level on issues focusing on Internet freedom, women and technology, digital security and women’s empowerment.
Image: DW/U. Wagner
Saad Hamid
Saad Hamid is a Digital Ecosystem Builder. He served as CEO of Demo Enterprise, Community Lead at Invest2Innovate, and Country Representative at Upwork (Elance-oDesk). He is part of initiatives such as Erozgar and Digitskills to help young people learn freelancing and online work.
Image: privat
Farieha Aziz
Farieha Aziz is a co-founder of Bolo Bhi, a digital rights and civil liberties group. She has a master’s degree in English Literature from the University of Karachi. On behalf of Bolo Bhi, she received the Index on Censorship Free Expression Award for their work on the Cybercrime Bill in April 2016. In 2015, she was recognized by Access Now as a hero for challenging government censorship.
Image: Privat
Asad Baig
Asad Baig is executive director and founder of Media Matters for Democracy. He is a journalist and media development expert, who passionately believes in the power of the media. He wants to play his part in ensuring that the media in Pakistan embraces its true value, projects progressive ideals and optimizes its potential as an instrument for strengthening democracy.
Image: Qurratulain Zaman
Zebunnisa Burki
Zebunnisa Burki is the deputy editor of opinions and editorials at "The News". She is a trained lawyer with a degree in politics and communication from the London School of Economics. She worked for seven years as the executive editor for the South Asian Journal, and is the co-founder of the first network of women media practitioners across South Asia, South Asian Women in Media (SAWM).
Image: DW/Q. Zaman
Shahzad Ahmed
Shahzad Ahmed is the country director for Pakistan’s chapter of Bytes for All, a human rights organization focusing on information and communication technologies for development, democracy and social justice. A development communications expert, Shahzad is a member of several groups, including the South Asia Board of Innovation for Change and the International Advisory Group - Code Red Initiative.
Image: DW/Q. Zaman
Sabahat Zakariya
Sabahat Zakariya is deputy editor at “The News,” one of Pakistan’s leading English-language dailies. She has a Master of Arts in journalism from New York University and was a recipient of the Falak Sufi scholarship. Her thesis on ‘The rise of single women in Pakistan’ was commissioned by Bloomsbury (India) for publication.
Image: Qurratulain Zaman
Marvi Sirmed
Marvi Sirmed is a human rights defender and journalist in Pakistan with more than 25 years’ experience. She has worked extensively on women’s rights, the rights of minorities and freedom of expression. She is a member of the executive council of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan and a recipient of the Presidential National Human Rights Award.
Image: Qurratulain Zaman
Shaheryar Popalzai
Shaheryar Popalzai is a digital strategist with a focus on the media industry. He is a former International Center for Journalists Knight Fellow and was previously associated with The Express Tribune as head of original content and strategy. He co-founded Hacks/Hackers Pakistan, part of a global community of journalists and technologists dedicated to collaborating on innovative technologies.
Image: Qurratulain Zaman
Sadaf Khan
Sadaf Khan is the program director and co-founder of Media Matters for Democracy. She has been associated with the media and media development sector in Pakistan since 2002. She is a Chevening scholar and has a degree in development communications and media / ICT governance policies from the London School of Economics.
Image: Qurratulain Zaman
Jahanzaib Haque
Jahanzaib Haque is the chief digital strategist at Dawn Media Group, focused on convergence and editorial integration of the company for the digital age. He is also the editor of Dwn.com and DawnNews TV. He researches and writes policy papers focusing on the Pakistani media, the Internet and human rights in relation to cyberspace.
Image: Qurratulain Zaman
Dr. Nida Kirmani
Nida Kirmani is associate professor of sociology in the Mushtaq Ahmad Gurmani School of Humanities and Social Sciences at the Lahore University of Management Sciences. She is also faculty director of the Saida Waheed Gender Initiative. Kirmani has published widely on issues related to gender, Islam, women’s movements, development and urban studies in India and Pakistan.
Image: Qurratulain Zaman
Raza Ahmad Rumi
Raza Ahmad Rumi is a Pakistani policy analyst, journalist and author. He is director of the Park Center for Independent Media. Raza is also visiting faculty at the Cornell Institute for Public Affairs. From 2015 to 2017, Raza was a scholar in residence at Ithaca College, the Gallatin School of Individualized Study, and New York University, where he taught courses in journalism.
Image: Qurratulain Zaman
Sophia Hasnain
Sophia Hasnain is the founder & CEO of Linked Things, the only end-to-end Internet of Things solution provider in Pakistan. After receiving a master’s degree in electrical engineering in the US and working in Europe, she returned to Pakistan. She envisions a world where simple and effective IoT solutions will make the lives of hundreds of millions of people more productive.
Image: DW/Q. Zaman
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Social media momentum against the government
Opposition against Imran Khan's government and the military is growing in Pakistan. An alliance of opposition parties are holding anti-government rallies across the country, with former PM Sharif making fiery speeches from the UK, where he is currently in exile.
Sharif's speeches are banned on mainstream media channels, although they are making rounds on social media all over the country.
"The government has controlled all local channels and newspapers, but it is still being criticized on social media. That is why the authorities want to control the digital media," Asad Butt of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan told DW.
M. Zia Uddin, a Pakistani journalist, says that big tech companies are unlikely to shift their servers to Pakistan. "Pakistani businesses benefit from the presence of high-tech companies. If the government pushes them against the wall, they might pull out their businesses, which would harm the country's economy," he told DW.
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'Fake news' and 'campaign against the army'
Amjad Shoaib, a retired army general and defense analyst, says the Citizens Protection (Against Online Harm) Rules 2020 would stop people from carrying out smear campaigns on social media against army generals and state institutions.
"A social media user accused me of acquiring land illegally, which is a completely baseless claim. Similarly, I also read on social media that two generals who opposed the army chief were detained. Again, fake news. Other countries censor this kind of content, so why shouldn't Pakistan do the same?" Shoaib said.
The ex-general also slammed those who are opposing the shifting of servers to Pakistan. "They did it in India and the US. Why can't they do it for Pakistan as well?"
