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Twitter, one of the popular social media platforms and microblogging site around the world which has become an integral part for political parties, has a threat to be banned in Pakistan. Yesterday, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) informed the Senate Standing Committee On Cabinet Secretariat that other social media sites including Facebook, WhatsApp, Dailymotion and YouTube complied to the government requests for removing or blocking objectionable content while Twitter didn’t oblige.
Director General of PTA’s Internet Policy and Web Analysis, Nisar Ahmed said, “Out of a hundred requests from Pakistan to block certain offensive material, roughly five percent are entertained. Twitter ignores all the remaining requests”. Ahmed informed the committee at Islamabad High Court that PTA has given a final notice to the platform and it has been made clear that if the microblogging site does not follow, it will be blocked in Pakistan.
Mr. Ahmed said, “The PTA has conveyed the court’s concern to Twitter, but has not got a response. The regulatory authority will implement court orders if Twitter does not respond to the final notice.” Ahmed concluded, “These companies do not only wish to keep growing in Pakistan but have also planned to bring underdeveloped cities and towns out of — through training programmes — their current states to put them on a par with developed areas.”
The official told the committee that Twitter is not as popular in Pakistan as Facebook, and so they have little to lose if Twitter is blocked. However, the platform would lose business if it will be shut down in the country, “The court is determined to teach Twitter a lesson — they will lose business,” he added.
Nisar informed the committee that Facebook had followed the government of Pakistan’s requests when asked to block content that might be perceived offensive. “Infact, Facebook has appointed a focal person to address the concerns from Pakistan. The focal person is a Pakistani national who understands the traditions, customs, and concerns of our society. YouTube is now also offering a local version in the country and removing offensive material, and the website is no longer an issue,” the official told the committee.
The ban on social media sites is not a new thing for Pakistan. In 2008 and 2010, Facebook was banned while in September 2012, PTA blocked access to YouTube throughout the country and it remained inaccessible for over two years. And now Twitter is going to be the next target of PTA.
What do you say? Is banning the social media sites a solution to the problems?
