Upon superficial inspection, Pakistan’s market for expression is enjoying a golden age. This is a still a land of broadsheet newspapers, in both Urdu and English. Television channels only multiply. The country hardly lacks for people with a point of view, with regiments of columnists and teeming opinion-formers on social media.

This picture of a thriving, vibrant press is one that many in authority would love the world to believe. It fits with the narrative that Pakistan’s democracy is alive and healthy, and no longer plagued by military meddling. After all, at elections in July one lot of civilians, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, led by Imran Khan, turfed out another lot, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz.

All is not what it seems, however. For a start a fiscal crisis has walloped the media, which rely on advertising from government agencies and state-owned companies. Owners talk of the pain of having to fire journalists and cut operations. “We are all paring ourselves to the bone just to survive,” says one. “Every day the challenge is just to put out the paper.”

Worse, the army is using the crisis to reinforce an even more disturbing trend: its tendency to strong-arm journalists and bloggers, behind the scenes, to suppress all criticism, not just of the armed forces directly, but also of the policies they hold dear. The army, for example, clearly feels that it should be the sole judge of threats to national security. It decided that Nawaz Sharif, Mr Khan’s predecessor as prime minister, was one such. Two years ago at a national-security meeting, Mr Sharif and his government seem to have confronted the generals over their support for violent extremism. The army considers various militant groups useful, either because they extend Pakistan’s influence into Afghanistan (the Haqqani network) or because they discomfit India (Lashkar-e-Taiba). But supporting these outfits undermines Pakistan’s relations with America and India, among others—a situation Mr Sharif was keen to reverse.

The meeting was the beginning of the end for Mr Sharif, whose downfall and defeat in the subsequent election the army helped engineer. It also marked the start of the persecution of Dawn, Pakistan’s best-known newspaper, whose star columnist, Cyril Almeida, broke the story. Just before the election Dawn suddenly found itself denied distribution in several cities. Meanwhile, Mr Almeida may face treason charges for an interview with the former prime minister in which Mr Sharif made the shocking point that Pakistan should get along better with India.

Media types say they cannot report on the army’s constant interference in public life. Instead, they are under immense pressure to support Mr Khan and demonise Mr Sharif. Other out-of-bounds topics include the disappearance of advocates of self-rule in the province of Balochistan or in tribal areas in the north of the country. And though it is fine—indeed, expected—to rail against graft among politicians, don’t dare ask why the army is allotted so much land to dole out to officers (including the previous army chief, Raheel Sharif, who received 90 acres outside Lahore on retirement).

Bloggers who cross the line vanish into army custody, only to reappear chastened and docile. Publishers and producers say that orders about what to cover and how come in meetings with army officers, or warning calls from anonymous numbers. Threats of closure are not taken lightly. In March Geo, Pakistan’s biggest television station, found itself off the air in much of the country for a month—supposedly the spontaneous decision of hundreds of cable-providers. Private lawsuits are used to harass journalists deemed to be enemies of the state. In this environment, self-censorship flourishes. As one veteran journalist puts it, “I have never in my life experienced anything as tough as this.”

The question is, why now? One theory is that a younger generation of army officers, drawn from the lower middle classes and bloodied in the fight against home-grown militants who turned on the army, have a more Messianic impulse than older, whisky-swilling generals. After the extent of the army’s intervention in civilian affairs and foreign policy was revealed by Mr Sharif, this cohort’s reaction was not to retreat, embarrassed, from the political sphere. Rather it sought to co-opt Mr Khan and sculpt an administration more to its liking. If so, there are lessons for Mr Khan, whose government is struggling to find a sense of direction. Once upon a time the army helped Mr Sharif into power, too.

The Economist

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry has said the government while disbanding Pemra has decided to establish Pakistan Media Regulatory Authority, which will simultaneously regulate electronic and print media as well as social media.

“In Pakistan, media enjoys freedom and is effective too as it can be compared with that of any developed country,” said the information minister while addressing a conference on ‘National Security, Nation-building and Mass Media’ organised by the Pakistan Institute of Conflict and Security Studies on Thursday.

“Under the current media regulatory regime, there is a lot of pressure on the Pakistani media and it is possible that in the coming years the media might have to face even bigger challenges,” said Fawad. “With the arrival of globalisation and artificial intelligence, along with various industries the media industry will also be affected.“As a result the media industry could further shrink.”He warned that the structure of print media could change and thousands more could be rendered jobless.

“We have to make policies keeping in mind the global trend and have to move towards international regulations,” said the federal minister. “This is a world of competition … we have to improve our culture, films and dramas otherwise they will be finished.”

He said it was the first time that the government was going to build Pakistan Media University. “It is our effort that our media policy be in line with the current era where even professionals will be mesmerised by the fields of innovation and technology at the media university,” said Fawad. “The prime minister [Imran Khan] is optimistic regarding the latest technology.”

Later addressing the media, the information minister said, “We welcome the decision of the Indian cabinet to open the Kartarpur border.

The suggestion to open the border was given by the chief of army staff to former cricketer and Indian parliament member Navjot Singh Sidhu during his visit to Pakistan.He said the Sikh community would benefit the most from opening of the Kartarpur crossing.

“The 550th birth anniversary of Baba Guru Nanak is being celebrated and Kartarpur is his birth place,” said Fawad. “Pakistan talks about peace in the region. Pakistan wants peace with both India and Afghanistan due to which it gave the suggestion.”

The Express Tribune 

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Business Recorder: Government wants to regulate social media: minister

The Nation: Government for regulating social media: Fawad

Inventions are being made all the time everywhere, but the invention that has truly changed the lives of everybody on the planet whether they know it or not is the internet. The rise and rise of social media and the freedom of expression that goes with it has already challenged a number of governments that feel threatened by such openness. Limitations on access to the internet are widely deployed and Pakistan is no exception. That said, the downside of cyberspace is far outweighed by the positives everywhere, again with Pakistan being no exception. Complexities abound, as do conundrums. So-called ‘fake news’ is much in the news and social media platforms are powerful and influential tools when it comes to spreading untruths or plain malicious gossip, and short of shutting down the relevant sites there is little the government can do.

The Islamabad High Court is currently exercised by the uploading of what is described as ‘false and malicious material’ against judges of the said court, and the acting registrar has got an FIR registered with the cybercrime wing of the Federal Investigation Agency. It is inappropriate that we comment directly on the material being circulated in cyberspace but there are issues relating to fundamental freedoms that can be commented on. No government or government institution is above criticism, and in a democracy, even a young democracy such as Pakistan, there is a place, indeed an essential space, for the freedom to protest and dissent against the actions of the state.

Social media platforms are today a vibrant and profitable part of the national cultural fabric, the old interwoven with the new. Their influence and presence is only going to grow as the ubiquity of the internet extends. The challenge for the state is where to draw a line between legitimate dissent or criticism, and citizen interventions in the context of an often poorly understood medium. It must not be forgotten that those that are the subject of dissent or criticism also have rights and freedoms, one of those being to protect themselves. We await developments with interest.

The Express Tribune

Journalists and activists in Pakistan faced an increasingly hostile climate in 2015 due to harassment, threats and violence from both the state and militant groups, according to Human Rights Watch report released on Wednesday.

In the 659-page World Report 2016, which has reviewed human rights practices in more than 90 countries, HRW says the government imposed new restrictions on free speech and funding of civil society groups in 2015 due to the security situation faced by the country.

Asia director of Human Rights Watch Brad Adams said Pakistan should not curb freedom of expression and association under the threat of extremism.

“Pakistan should reverse course and repeal or amend laws curbing freedom of expression and association,” he said.

“The government should never use the threat of extremist violence as a pretext to violate the rights of independent voices.”

Similarly, the report claimed, Taliban and other armed extremist groups threatened media outlets and targeted journalists and activists for their work.

Media was also deterred from reporting on or criticising human rights violations in the country’s counter-terrorism operations, it added.

According to the overview by HRW, since the Army Public School attack in December 2014, the government has responded with National Action Plan to combat terrorism, established military courts for terrorism cases and ended the unofficial moratorium on capital punishment, which led to execution of 327 people in 2015 alone.

Following the attack, thousands of Afghans living in Pakistan returned to Afghanistan or fled elsewhere due to subsequent backlashes.

Violent attacks and persecution of religious minorities from extremist groups were also reported.

The “Policy for Regulation of INGOs in Pakistan” required all international non-governmental organisations and domestic groups receiving foreign funding to register and obtain prior permission to carryout any activities and restricted their operations.

Cybercrimes bill allowed the government to censor online content, the report said, criminalise internet user activity, and access internet users’ data without judicial review.

“Pakistan’s government should take urgent steps to create an enabling environment for free expression and association,” Adams said.

“Pakistan needs to fight terrorism, but denying its citizens fundamental freedoms and due process rights is an unlawful and extremely misguided approach.”

Express Tribune

KARACHI: As the National Assembly gears up to debate the controversial Prevention of Electronic Crimes Bill (PEC 2015), a UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression has urged legislators to ensure that the bill contains clear language and does not encroach on free speech.

“My real concern is if this legislation were to become law, its enforcement could lead to situations which would be inconsistent with Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR),” Special Rapporteur David Kaye told The Express Tribune as he expressed the hope of hosting a dialogue with the government on the bill.

Kaye had on Monday shared with the Pakistan government his concerns over different sections of the draft cybercrime bill within the context of the ICCPR which Pakistan had ratified in 2010. One of the key areas of concerns for him was the broad language used in the bill.

“When the law is vague or open ended, you open up the possibility to problems (in enforcement),” he said, adding that rigorous enforcement by the government of such a law could interfere with freedom of expression and lead to censorship, self or otherwise.

As an example, he pointed to sections three, four and 10 of the bill which criminalise unauthorised intentional copying and transmission of ‘any data’.

“Wording of sections three, four and 10, in particular, is very broad and, potentially, would effectively criminalise accessing, copying and transmitting of any information system or data,” he said in his statement.

“The core problem is that it is not clearly defined (in the law) what is being regulated.”

Another area of concern for Kaye was the disproportionate punishments listed for various offences, with some of them “quite harsh.”

“If you are going to penalise people, they should not be disproportionate with the crime committed,” he said, adding that the bill also needs to ensure there are processes for those incriminated are tried under a fair and transparent process with adequate defence.

Express Tribune

On 17 September, 2015 Pakistan Standing Committee of National Assembly on Information Technology second time hurriedly cleared the draft of the controversial “Prevention of Electronic Crimes Bill 2015” and sent it to the National Assembly for final approval despite widespread criticism by freedom of expression and civic liberties groups.

According to the draft bill, it is considered a crime to take a picture in a public place, capturing someone in the background without their consent. Children above 12 and fewer than 18 years can also be booked for such crimes even if they did it unintentionally or accidentally.

Opposition political parties and NGOs believe the proposed bill was too harsh and curbed human rights besides giving wide powers to law enforcement agencies. Representatives from the industry argued that the bill would harm their businesses.

Under the draft bill sending text messages without the permission of the receiver fall in criminalized activity or commenting against government on social media would be punishable with fines or imprisonment. The bill gives the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) the powers to block objectionable content and websites.

Member of National Assembly, Shazia Marri argued to change some clauses as draft bill that seemed to curb freedom of speech. Marri maintained that access to information was a fundamental right and its responsibility rested with the state. `Giving powers to an authority to block access to information is not just” she said.

Pakistan Press Foundation

The website “Hum TV” a leading entertainment television channel of Pakistan was hacked and defaced on 6th September.

The group calling itself ‘Pakistan Cyber Attackers’ after hacking website wrote on it that vulgarity and nudity in the dramas are increasing day after day. They said these days, each and every drama has vulgar scenes in it or even nudity and which is unacceptable thing in Muslim country like Pakistan. They posted that morning shows have become immoral, vulgar and semi-nude.

They linked to vulgarity in television dramas and other shows, the suicide of two teenagers in Karachi, who had killed each other in school premises because their parents were not allowing their marriage. They warned that such incidents will only increase if this vulgarity and immorality isn’t stopped.

They criticized role of Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) for not regulating TV shows and called on PEMRA to take action against TV channels for airing inappropriate programs. They criticized talk shows for discussing the topic of vulgarity in dramas and shows.

They shared the links of three clips of HUM TV dramas on the website that, according to them, were inappropriate to be aired. They also said culture and rules of Islam which should be followed in Pakistan.

Pakistan Press Foundation

KARACHI: The committee formed to review the controversial cyber crime bill has completely rejected the draft instead of suggesting pointers to fix problematic clauses.

The Cyber Crime Bill Review Committee met at Karachi Press Club on Monday afternoon to review the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Bill, 2015. The decision to reject the bill was made to make sure the government presents a new bill, instead of including recommendations from various groups, such as theirs, and passing a flawed bill.

“This bill in its current form is against fundamental human rights,” pointed out Barrister Zamir Ghumro, one of the two legal experts the committee had invited. “It is against Article 19-A of the Constitution of Pakistan and it should be stopped immediately.”

The meanings of the words used in the draft are so wide that any man can be penalised on any charge, he said, giving the example of the word ‘unauthorised’. “Unauthorised access to information is criminalised under this law,” he said. “Anything can come under ‘unauthorised’.”

The secretary general of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists, Mazhar Abbas, appreciated that the government has taken the initiative. “But the bill in its current form is unacceptable,” he said. “We have serious apprehensions that this law will be misused by the authorities.”

Journalist Omar Quraishi, former op-ed editor at The Express Tribune, spoke about the effect of this law on the media. “You can’t do anything in investigative journalism because you wouldn’t have access to anything,” he said.

Several questions were raised by the committee on issues, such as what happens when a video of a TV channel goes online or an article from a printed newspaper is uploaded online. Will all of that be censored under this law? Will you also have to take consent before putting up a picture or video of a criminal?

“This is not a law. This is absurdity,” said Senator Taj Haider. “The government needs to make it clear which crimes it is aiming to stop through this law.”

He mentioned the problematic aspects of the law, such as how the authorities will not need a warrant to search, seize or arrest. “The most important part of any law is the last page which mentions the purpose of the law, and no purpose has been given here,” he said.

Lawyer Zahra Rose Dean, who was part of the team that made the initial draft of the law, questioned how the law will address e-blasphemy and other e-crimes. “How will they be bifurcated under this law,” she asked.

The Prevention of Electronic Crimes Bill, 2015, will ban all political commentary on digital and online forums. It also requires a prior written consent from the person one is emailing, calling, messaging via any digital medium, and before uploading or putting up a picture or video of another person. It will also remove any content that undermines the glory of Islam without defining what glory of Islam means.

If passed, the bill will also block access to or remove any content on the internet or any device that is against foreign policy or against any section of this law. Without defining the terms ‘obscenity’ and ‘immorality’, any messages or content that falls under this criteria will be criminalised.

Express Tribune

The post Cyber crime bill: Review committee rejects bill entirely appeared first on Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF).

KARACHI: Sabeen Mahmud, social media campaigner and human rights activist who founded the social forum T2F, was shot dead on Friday evening, minutes after the end of an interactive discussion ‘Unsilen­cing Balochistan’ organised by her and attended by journalists and rights activists, including the founder leader of the Voice for Baloch Missing Persons, Abdul Qadeer Baloch.

Karachi-South Deputy Inspector General of Police Dr Jamil Ahmed ruled out the killing as result of a mugging attempt and said she had been attacked deliberately but he could not share any possible motive.

“She was returning home with her mother in a car after the seminar she had organised on Balochistan,” he said.

“It’s an incident of targeted killing, but we are not aware of any threats she had been receiving. The investigations are on and it would be too early to speculate about the motive behind the killing,” the official said.

Defence police SHO Kansan Dean said pillion riders on a motorcycle attacked Ms Mehmud and her mother on Sunset Boulevard in DHA Phase-II after they had left the T2F in a car. Both of them suffered bullet injuries and were taken to a nearby private hospital where doctors pronounced Sabeen dead.

Her mother was shifted to the Aga Khan University Hospital.

The body was taken to the Jinnah Post-Graduate Medical Centre for post-mortem.

“She sustained four bullet injuries on her face, neck and chest,” police surgeon Dr Jalil Qadir said. Her autopsy, conducted by senior medico-legal officer Dr Nasreen Qamar, also showed injuries on her arm and shoulder that might be bullet exit wounds, added the police surgeon.

Half an hour before her murder, Sabeen Mehmud’s Facebook status read: “Unsilencing Balochistan (Take 2) with Wusatullah Khan, Mama Qadeer, Farzana Baloch and Mir Mohammad Ali Talpur. Moderated by Moneeza Ahmed.”

“It appears that an attempt is being made to silence human rights defenders or those who take up the causes of the people,” the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan’s Chairperson Zohra Yusuf said after the incident.

“This is a shocking event for the city and citizens as T2F has been providing a space to the people to express their views,” the prominent rights activist said. On Thursday at 6.30pm, Sabeen Mehmud had also organised a seminar about the Balochistan situation, she said.

“It was the same seminar which was organised by LUMS (Lahore University of Management Sciences) where three speakers – Mama Qadeer, Farzana Majeed and Mohammed Ali Talpur – were the same, but it was cancelled under alleged pressure of ISI,” the HRCP chief said.

“It can’t be said categorically that her murder was linked with this event,” Ms Yusuf said.

“As Ms Sabeen has been consistently providing the space of T2F to discuss the issues of human rights, cultural diversity etc due to which she had received threats, prompting her to hire the services of a security guard,” she said.

“She was trying to promote liberal and rational thinking, which is lacking in society,” said Ms Yusuf.

Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah, who is in charge of the home ministry, sought a report about the incident and ordered the city police chief to arrest the killers.

Karachi police chief Ghulam Qadir Thebo formed a special team, headed by a DIG, to investigate the murder, according to a spokesman.

Dawn

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ISLAMABAD: For those who have been able to access YouTube in the last a few days, the joy is short-lived.

“The reason why YouTube was accessible in certain parts of the country was because of a technical fault which will be fixed,” said Minister of State for Information Technology Anusha Rehman on Friday.

The rumours that YouTube was accessible in certain parts of the country during the last a few days are true. According to a senior official in the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), YouTube became accessible through certain Internet Service Providers (ISPs) due to a technical fault.

Minister says issue of YouTube blockade will be addressed through new cyber crime bill
“The news of unblocking YouTube will be announced officially, not done quietly,” said the official.

The minister stated that the YouTube issue was being addressed in the cyber crime bill which she hoped would be approved by the government in about two months.

She explained that the Bill safeguarded the interests of the service providers (Google in this case which owns YouTube) by not

holding it responsible for any blasphemous or anti-state content posted online by individuals/users.

“We saw how a blasphemous content was shown in France and its fallout was seen in the streets of Pakistan. No government will take the responsibility upon itself to unblock YouTube until a concrete solution is found to deal with objectionable content on internet,” she said.

Wahajus Siraj, the convener for Internet Service Providers Association of Pakistan (ISPAK), explained how unlike Pakistan countries, including Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt, Indonesia and Malaysia, entered into agreements with the USA.

“Under the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty, these countries are in a position to request service providers such as Google to follow local laws and remove objectionable content from YouTube.” He said Pakistan also needed to enter into a similar agreement to be able to request service providers to block objectionable content.

The news that YouTube had become accessible spread like a wildfire but many internet uses remained disappointed as some could access YouTube and many others could not.

“It was too good to be true but I still immediately switched on my laptop but an error window showed on the screen instead of YouTube,” said medical practitioner Hyra Farooq, who then started calling friends to confirm if the news was correct.

The video sharing website has been banned in Pakistan since September 2012 after the search engine giant refused to take down a blasphemous film triggered protests around the world and in Pakistan.

As the ban on YouTube enters into the third year, internet users in Pakistan continue to access it through alternate channels.

Daily Dawn

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