The Pakistan government is set to boycott all social media platforms, including YouTube, WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, from July 13 to 18 to command “hate stuff” during Ramadan. This decision comes after X, originally Twitter, has been blocked for four months.
In Punjab, a state with over 120 million people, a warning from the Punjab government’s council on law and order, led by deputy minister Maryam Nawaz, to” power hate materials and misinformation to avoid sectarian murder” during six to eleven Muharram, according to a late-night notification. The Punjab state has asked the federal government, led by Nawaz’s brother, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, to adopt the suspension.
” Social advertising is a cruel media”, declared Pakistan’s military commander Gen Asim Munir, emphasizing the need to fight “digital terrorism”. Ishaq Dar, the vice excellent minister, recently called for a total ban on social media.
The Shehbaz government had previously halted X in February after complaints that Imran Khan, the founder of Pakistan Tehreek i-Insaf, had tampered with the benefits of the general election. This is thought to have been influenced by the defense to thwart Imran Khan’s rule. The military and government have experienced major reaction on social press since Khan’s resignation in April 2022, which led to the arrest of numerous social media activists affiliated with Khan’s party.
