‘PAKISTAN BLOCKED X AMID POLLS’

In court submission, govt cites platform’s failure to adhere to its directives as reason for shutdown

PAKISTAN’S Interior Ministry said on Wednesday it had blocked access to social media platform X around the time of February’s election on national security concerns, confirming a long-suspected shutdown.

Users in Pakistan have reported problems using X, formerly Twitter, since mid-February, but the government had made no announcement on this until now.

The Interior Ministry mentioned the shutdown in a written submission to the Islamabad High Court on Wednesday.

Another court told the government to reconsider the ban within a week, said Abdul Moiz Jafri, a petitioner and advocate.

“It is very pertinent to mention here that the failure of Twitter/X to adhere to the lawful directives of the government of Pakistan and address concerns regarding the misuse of its platform necessitated the imposition of a ban,” the ministry said in its court submission, which Reuters saw.

“The decision to impose a ban on Twitter/X in Pakistan was made in the interest of upholding national security, maintaining public order and preserving the integrity of our nation.”

The ministry said X had been reluctant to resolve the issue.

X said it continued to work with Pakistan’s government to understand its concerns.

Access to X has remained limited since the Feb 8 national election, which the party of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan says was rigged.

Among Pakistan’s political parties, Khan’s party is the most prolific user of social media platforms, particularly after the country’s traditional media began censoring news about the excricket star and his party ahead of the polls. Khan has over 20 million followers on X, making him the most followed Pakistani.

Khan had said Pakistan’s military was behind his ouster as prime minister in 2022 and that it helped his opponents form the current government, despite candidates backed by his party winning most seats in the election. The military denied this charge.

He remains in jail on a number of convictions, most of which came days before the election.

Many government officials in Pakistan, notably Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, continue to use X, most likely through VPN software that bypasses the blocks.

The decision to temporarily block X was taken after considering confidential reports from intelligence and security agencies, the ministry report said.

It said “hostile elements operating on Twitter/X have nefarious intentions to create an environment of chaos and instability, with the ultimate goal of destabilising the country and plunging it into some form of anarchy.”

Rights groups and marketing advertisers have raised concerns.

Digital rights activist Usama Khilji said the block seemed designed to hinder the democratic accountability, which a platform with instant updates of real-time information enables.