The Pakistani government will ban all social media platforms including YouTube, WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok from July 13 to 18 in a bid to curb “hate content” during Ramadan. The decision comes after it blocked X (formerly Twitter) for four months.
Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz’s cabinet committee on law and order recommended the ban from the 6th to the 11th of Muharram to “control hate material and misinformation to avoid sectarian violence” in Punjab, a province of more than 120 million people, according to a notification issued by the Punjab government late Thursday night. The Punjab government has asked the federal government, led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Nawaz’s uncle, to implement the ban.
“Social media is a malign medium,” Pakistan’s Army chief, Gen. Asim Muneer, said, stressing the need to fight “digital terrorism.” Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, who is also the foreign minister, recently called for a total ban on social media.
Shehbaz’s government had shut down X in February following allegations that the Election Commission of Pakistan had tampered with the general election results. The move was believed to have been influenced by the military to prevent Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf founder Imran Khan from assuming power. Since Khan was ousted in a no-confidence motion in April 2022, the military and government have faced significant backlash on social media, leading to a number of arrests of social media activists from Khan’s party.
Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz’s cabinet committee on law and order recommended the ban from the 6th to the 11th of Muharram to “control hate material and misinformation to avoid sectarian violence” in Punjab, a province of more than 120 million people, according to a notification issued by the Punjab government late Thursday night. The Punjab government has asked the federal government, led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Nawaz’s uncle, to implement the ban.
“Social media is a malign medium,” Pakistan’s Army chief, Gen. Asim Muneer, said, stressing the need to fight “digital terrorism.” Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, who is also the foreign minister, recently called for a total ban on social media.
Shehbaz’s government had shut down X in February following allegations that the Election Commission of Pakistan had tampered with the general election results. The move was believed to have been influenced by the military to prevent Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf founder Imran Khan from assuming power. Since Khan was ousted in a no-confidence motion in April 2022, the military and government have faced significant backlash on social media, leading to a number of arrests of social media activists from Khan’s party.
