Devendra Kumar
Pakistan’s decision to block access to social media platform X, formerly Twitter, has left users in a state of turmoil for six days. The move has sparked outrage from human rights activists who are demanding a full restoration of internet services and access to social media. The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority has remained silent on the outage, fueling speculation and conspiracy theories among users.
The blockage is believed to be linked to the political turmoil in the country, which has seen a significant increase in instability since the parliamentary elections in February. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, led by imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan, has been at the forefront of the protests, claiming that the elections were rigged and that the results have been manipulated to keep Khan out of power. Khan’s party has accused the authorities of imposing restrictions on X to suppress its voice on social media, but the allegations have been denied by the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority.
The elections oversight body claims that the vote was fair and transparent, but Khan’s supporters remain skeptical. The blockage on X has had a significant impact on users in Pakistan, who rely heavily on social media to stay informed about current events and to organize protests. The platform is often used by protest organizers to call followers out to the streets and to spread the word about planned demonstrations.
Khan’s rivals, including former Premier Shehbaz Sharif, are trying to form a coalition government, and the outage is seen as an attempt to silence the opposition. Khan himself has been convicted of several offenses, which his supporters claim are politically motivated moves to keep him out of office. The situation is likely to remain tense in the coming days, with human rights activists and social media users demanding that the government lift the restrictions on X.
The US government has urged Pakistan to respect the rights of its citizens to access information and to express themselves freely. However, it remains to be seen whether the authorities will comply with these demands. As the blockage continues, it is clear that the situation will not resolve itself anytime soon, and the people of Pakistan are left to wonder when they will be able to regain access to their social media platforms. The Pakistan government’s motives for the blockage are unclear, but one thing is certain: the consequences of this move will be far-reaching and impactful.