• March 18, 2017
• Freedom of Expression, Governance, Social Media

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) directed the authorities concerned on Friday to include sections related to blasphemy and pornography in the Cyber Crimes Act. Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui noted that two important aspects – blasphemy and pornography – have not specifically been mentioned in the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016. He subsequently directed the […]

• March 17, 2017
• Front Page, Governance, Social Media

ISLAMABAD: Popular social networking website Facebook on Thursday said it would send a team to Pakistan to help resolve the country’s reservations over ‘blasphemous and objectionable’ material on its web pages. An interior ministry spokesperson said that the Facebook management was aware of Pakistan’s reservations and wanted to resolve the issue through mutual consultation and dialogue. […]

• March 16, 2017
• Front Page, Media and Governance, Social Media

Lahore: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has voiced grave concern over government representatives’ statements regarding trying a key political leader under the cyber crime law. The commission also expressed alarm over some parliamentarians seeking to malign the country’s leading human rights defender. In a statement issued on Wednesday, the commission said: “HRCP is […]

• March 16, 2017
• Front Page, Social Media

ISLAMABAD: Though the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) claims to have proposed installation of filters to the Information Technology and Telecommunication Ministry, the ministry denies having received any such proposal. A spokesperson for the IT Ministry, Saghir Ahmed Wattoo, told Business Recorder that the ministry has not received any such proposal, besides even filters cannot block […]

• March 15, 2017
• Media and Governance, Media and Society, Social Media

ISLAMABAD/LAHORE: The National Assembly (NA) and the Punjab provincial assembly (PA) on Monday resolved that blasphemous links on internet be removed. The NA, while strongly condemning the appearance of blasphemous material on the social media, unanimously passed a resolution for constitution of a special committee of the House to look into the matter. The 10-member […]

• March 15, 2017
• Information Technology, Social Media

AS you read this, a revolutionary shift is happening in the way the world works, with economies across the planet going digital fast. A country’s progress in digital transformation is measured using the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) framework. While ‘technology’ has become a buzzword and everybody intuitively knows that technology is good, it’s not […]

• March 15, 2017
• Freedom of Expression, Front Page, Media and Governance, Media and Society, Social Media

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly on Tuesday passed a joint resolution unanimously to condemn circulation of blasphemous material on social media and urged the government to take necessary measures to curb it. The House also authorised Speaker National Assembly to constitute a 10-member committee comprising members from all parliamentary parties to discuss the issue and propose […]

• March 14, 2017
• Social Media

ISLAMABAD: Minister of State for Information, Broadcasting and National Heritage Marriyum Aurangzeb on Monday said that the people would decide about the vilification campaign against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his family on social media. She slammed the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) for running a vilification campaign against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his family in […]

• March 14, 2017
• Governance, Social Media

ISLAMABAD: Hearing the petition seeking removal of blasphemous content from social media, a Islamabad High Court (IHC) judge on Monday dispelled the impression that the case in anyway was linked with a reference pending against him in the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC). He said he was ready to face an open trial even in the […]

• March 14, 2017
• Freedom of Expression, Front Page, Media and Governance, Social Media

ISLAMABAD: Issues of blasphemous content on social media and recent incidents of mysterious disappearances of some bloggers once again resonated in both houses of parliament on Monday but with different tone and notes. The upper house took the matter after a motion was moved by two opposition senators whereas it was taken up through points of […]

• March 14, 2017
• Freedom of Expression, Front Page, Social Media

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court Monday directed the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to submit a report on the activities of four bloggers – who went missing earlier this year and resurfaced a few days later – and how they had managed to leave Pakistan. Islamabad High Court’s (IHC) Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui ordered the FIA Director […]

• March 13, 2017
• Freedom of Expression, Front Page, Media and Governance, Social Media

Islamabad – A writ petition has been filed in the Islamabad High Court seeking its directions for closure of Facebook in the country until blasphemous material and pages are deleted permanently. A single bench of IHC comprising Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui will Monday (today) take up the petition moved by Civil Society of Pakistan through its […]

• March 12, 2017
• Freedom of Expression, Front Page, Media and Governance, Social Media

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Saturday constituted a five-member team to investigate the issue of blasphemous content on different social media pages and websites. The team is headed by Director FIA Mazhar Kakakhel. The team contacted the Facebook administration which assured it of providing records and IP addresses of the pages spreading blasphemous and […]

• March 11, 2017
• Freedom of Expression, Front Page, Social Media

ISLAMABAD: Unlike the past, YouTube and Facebook are now cooperating with the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) in blocking blasphemous and anti-Islam content for Pakistani users. A senior spokesman for the PTA told The News here on Friday that following the Islamabad High Court’s direction, the authority took up the matter with top executives of Facebook […]