Pakistan has verified that social media platform X is intended to be shut down, with defence officials stating security threats as the reason. Access to the Elon Musk-owned platform became difficult for users in mid-February amid protests against alleged election rigging by jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s party. The confirmation came from Pakistan’s interior ministry in a court submission on Wednesday.
Therefore, the ministry announced that the unofficial applications of Twitter/X were not subject to directives, and it raised concerns about platform misuse. The ministry levied the social media channel with complaints of being unable to tell the Pakistani authorities what was happening or refusing to deal with the issues surfacing.
A Pakistan high court ordered the federal government to unlock access to X just one week after 2.5 months of having them blocked. “The SHC pronounces a judgment that within one week the government will revoke the letter, and the next date an appropriate order will be passed otherwise,” explained Moiz Jaaferi, the lawyer who had challenged the ban.
In correspondence with this development, Pakistan reaffirms its commitment to control social media platforms as increased concerns about them are emerging. The closing of X consolidates the governing authorities’ concerns about the strategy they adopt to balance national security and freedom of expression. It also makes the issue of what social media firms need to do regarding state concerns while not undermining people’s rights wide open for debate.
The court’s resolution to release X illustrates inter alia the role of legal authority in government actions involving internet coverage. Such a decision means the judiciary is not just there to track down wrongdoers and defend the right of citizens to get online information and have the freedom to express themselves.
The present discourse on whether to regulate or not social media occurrences also relates to issues concerning the role of technology in society and the issue posed by the need to devise proper governance mechanisms to address arising challenges.
Check here for the latest updates in Hindi!