Pakistan’s New Censorship Act, Google and Facebook, etc. “will leave”

Global Internet companies such as Facebook, Google and Twitter have together protested Pakistan’s granting regulatory authorities comprehensive authority to censor digital content and threatened to leave Pakistan.

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has given Pakistani news agencies the power to delete and block digital content that causes threats or complaints against the government or otherwise harms its governance, security and national defense. In response, the technology company said through an organization called Asia Internet Coalition (AIC) that it is feeling uneasy about the scope of the new law applied to Internet companies in Pakistan. AIC represents not only Facebook, Google, and Twitter, but also Apple, Amazon, LinkedIn, SAP Expedia Group, Yahoo, Airbnb, and Grab.

Global tech companies have expressed concern over a new bill submitted by Prime Minister Khan in February. After the Pakistani government submitted a bill earlier this year, the AIC pretended to withdraw. In a statement on November 19 (local time), AIC repeatedly stated that no consultations were going on, and that AIC member companies could not operate in Pakistan, where this law is enforced.

AIC said in a statement that the law, which pursues rigorous data localization, limits its customers’ ability to access the free and open Internet and will isolate Pakistan’s digital economy from the world, establishing privacy and freedom of expression for social media companies. It is said that it is terrible to see that it is possible to enforce violations of established human rights norms.

AIC also said that the law would make it difficult for AIC members to provide services to Pakistani users and businesses. If Pakistan is an attractive technology investment destination to realize its digital transformation goals, the government will protect the advantages of the Internet and protect people from risk. He added that it calls for practical and clear rules to work with the industry.

Under the new law, technology companies that fail to remove or block illegal content from the platform within 24 hours of notice from Pakistani authorities are fined up to $3.14 million. In addition, neighboring India, which has similar regulations, is receiving little or no backlash. Pakistan is currently demanding these companies to establish local offices in Korea.

Pakistan has been cracking down on inappropriate content on the Internet for the past few months. In early 2020, PUBG Mobile, a popular mobile game, was banned, and TikTok was temporarily blocked in October. Countries like Pakistan and India make little contribution to the interests of tech companies. However, India, which has recently submitted some protectionist laws, is rarely backed by technology companies around the world due to its size. By comparison, Pakistan has 75 million Internet users. India is the largest market for Google and Facebook users. This is why it is said that Silicon Valley companies are coming to India because of the number of monthly active users. Related information can be found here .