Access to X has been disrupted in many areas of Pakistan since February 17, when former Rawalpindi commissioner Liaquat Chattha accused the chief election commissioner and chief justice of Pakistan of being involved in rigging the February 8 general elections.
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar acknowledged that social media platform X was already banned when the new government took over the reins from the caretaker setup, saying there was no official notification for the clampdown.
Similar disruptions were also observed during the general elections.The information minister had himself pushed back last week against the disruption and claimed X was still working, calling on those questioning otherwise to present a notification for the ban.
However, in an interview today with media platform World Echo News, Tarar contrasted his own statement, saying: “Twitter was already banned when we came into government. There is no official notification for it but obviously, everyone can see that its signal and frequency are not working as normal and it is being used through virtual private networks. This is correct.”
The information minister suggested that there should be a charter on “dos and don’ts of the red lines that should not be crossed”, adding that political parties should discuss issues such as misogynistic abuse of women, cursing and mockery of martyrs, etc
“I think there is a need for a charter and it will be a good thing if it happens.”The minister was also questioned regarding press freedom, particularly the recent arrest of journalist Asad Ali Toor, to which he said: “I am a political activist at the ground level and have always been present with you. I would want that I fully perform my role regarding freedom of expression and journalism.”
Questioned about the Punjab government’s plans to bring a law tackling “fake news” and whether the federal government intended to bring something similar, Tarar said it would be better for political parties to decide matters between themselves on tackling the issue of “fake news” instead of the state sorting out the matter.
He also said talks could be and should be held with the Sunni Ittehad Council, and praised the conduct of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur for creating an atmosphere of conciliation.
