The temporary government of Pakistan has chosen to delay making a decision about bringing back X (previously known as Twitter) in the country. They will leave this decision for the new government to handle. This is an important development in the ongoing situation regarding whether people can use the social media platform or not.
According to sources told that the fate of X in Pakistan will now rest squarely on the shoulders of the upcoming administration.
According to the sources, the decision to block X in Pakistan stemmed from the platform’s alleged non-compliance with local regulations, particularly in addressing the presence of illegal content. Despite some efforts to address flagged material, only a fraction of such content has been effectively dealt with, prompting the government to take action.
X has been unavailable in Pakistan for over eleven days now, raising concerns about people’s ability to communicate digitally and express themselves freely. The platform was blocked on February 17th, and users in the country have been unable to access it since February 28th.
The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority redirected inquiries regarding the potential reinstatement of X to the Interior Ministry. However, as of now, there has been no official response from the ministry regarding the matter.
In Pakistan, with the current disruptions happening, lots of people are using Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) on social media to get around the restrictions and reach X. But it seems like the government’s actions to stop VPNs are making it harder for people to bypass the ban. This is making folks online even more frustrated.
Given this situation, Pakistan conducted general elections on February 8th, 2024. Now, plans are in progress for the first meeting of the newly elected national assembly. The new government is expected to be established in the initial week of March, which will complicate resolving the X accessibility problem even further.
