The government should realize that it cannot regulate social media and any attempt to moderate content will be futile. The stifling of dissent on social media platforms will also affect freedom of expression and weaken democracy in the country.
The government recently notified new online rules for all citizens and social media companies operating in Pakistan. According to the new rules, any content posted online will be removed if it goes against the ‘glory of Islam’ and ‘security of Pakistan’ or violates decency and morality, without providing details. These imaginary boundaries pose greater risk for users and challenges for regulators.
Social media companies are expected to have a physical presence in Pakistan and will be expected to comply with the request to remove objectionable content within 48 hours. The time duration is only 12 hours if it relates to emergencies or else the company will have to issue an apology or it will be blocked. Such rules in the age of information technology are preposterous and rather impractical. India had taken similar measures recently but despite being a major market for global tech companies, it had to massive criticism for the stringent demands and censorship.
Social media companies have not reacted to the new regulations and are neither expected to do so. The government attempted to bring similar laws in November 2020 but the Asia Internet Coalition (AIC) had threatened to quit the country if the rules stayed. Rather than easing these draconian curbs, the government is attempting to expand the powers of regulators such as the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) allowing them to force social media companies to comply with local laws.
Pakistan is already ranked low in terms of online freedom as internet users face arrests, imprisonment and physical attacks. There is no doubt that violent and harmful content on social media should be controlled through both government policies and self-regulation. However, the social media regulations by the government in an attempt to assert itself is hardly an adequate solution to the problem.
Social media is fundamentally different from traditional media and other such high-handed approaches have largely fallen short. It is imperative that measures are not taken which can impede freedom of speech and there should be greater transparency on the matter which can be removed from social media.
