ISLAMABAD – Facebook, Google, and Twitter have mutinied over the strictcensorship rules due to be implemented by Pakistan and are threatening toleave the country altogether.
As reported by the New York Timeslink,the tech giants’ anger is directed at Pakistan’s Citizens Protection Rules(Against Online Harm), a recently-revealed set of tight censorship demands.
The ruleslink(.PDF),laid out by the government of Pakistan, would give local authorities thepower to demand social media platforms remove any content they deemquestionable within 24 hours. Pakistan has proposed the creation of a”National Coordinator” office to monitor these services.
In addition, social media platforms must provide a way to prevent the livestreaming of “online content related to terrorism, extremism, hate speech,defamation, fake news, incitement to violence and national security.”
Within three months of the new rules coming into play, companies such asFacebook and Twitter must also open up permanent offices in the country,establish one or more local servers to store data in Pakistan, and mustalso agree to “remove, suspend or disable access to such account, onlinecontent of citizens of Pakistan residing outside its territorial boundariesand posts on online content that are involved in spreading of fake news ordefamation and violates or affects the religious, cultural, ethnic, ornational security sensitivities of Pakistan.”
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The proposed rules also give the government the right to block a socialnetwork if they refuse to comply or impose fines of up to five hundredmillion rupees (approximately $6.9m).
Critics argue that such wide-reaching powers are designed to curb freespeech and impose censorship, and it seems that Facebook, Twitter, andGoogle agree.
The organizations are part of the Asia Internet Coalition (AIC), a tradeassociation discussing issues of internet innovation and regulation in theregion. In response to Pakistan’s ruleslink,the organization said, “the rules as currently written would make itextremely difficult for AIC Members to make their services available toPakistani users and businesses.”
