X working with Pak govt to ‘understand concerns’ over ban
ISLAMABAD: Social media platform X said on Thursday it would work with Pakistan’s government “to understand its concerns” after authorities insisted an ongoing two-month ban was based on security grounds.
The platform, has been rarely accessible since February 17, when jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s party called for protests following a government official’s admission of vote manipulation in the February election.
“We continue to work with the Pakistani Government to understand their concerns,” X’s Global Government Affairs team posted, in their first comments since the site was disrupted.
The Interior Ministry on Wednesday said X was blocked on security grounds, according to a report submitted to the Islamabad High Court where one of several challenges to the ban is being heard.
On the same day, the High Court of the southern Sindh province ordered the government to restore access to social media platform X within a week.
“The Sindh High Court has given the government one week to withdraw the letter, failing which, on the next date, they will pass appropriate orders,” Moiz Jaaferi, a lawyer challenging the ban, said.
The court’s decision has yet to be published. “The court order gave the government one week to decide what it wants to do,” lawyer Jibran Nasir, another petitioner, said.
High court orders apply provincially, but can act as a precedent for other top courts.
Both the government and the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) had for weeks refused to comment on the outages.
“It is the sole prerogative and domain of the federal government to decide what falls within the preview of terms of ‘defence’ or ‘security’ of Pakistan and what steps are necessary to be taken to safeguard National Security,” said the interior ministry’s report, submitted by senior official Khurram Agha.
The interior ministry suggested intelligence agencies were behind the order. Digital rights activists, however, said it was designed to quash dissent after February 8 polls that were fraught with claims of rigging.