Amnesty international calls for restoration of X in Pakistan

Amnesty International has called for the immediate restoration of social media platform X as the ban entered 29^th day.

The social media site, owned by Elon Musk, was first suspended on February 08 – the polling day of the General Elections in Pakistan.

Since then it hasn’t been fully restored in the country.

In a post on X, the human rights group said it has signed a joint statement with 28 other civil society organisations for the restoration of the microblogging site and has urged “Pakistani authorities to uphold the rights to freedom of expression and access to information under the country’s international human rights commitments.”

“The arbitrary blocking of platforms, including the prolonged and unannounced disruption of “X”since 17 February 2024, is a sobering illustration of growing digital censorship in the country,” it said.

Moreover, it said that the complete silence from the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) is “extremely alarming”.

“They have failed to furnish any reasons for its actions and exceeded its mandate to block an entire internet platform. The absence of transparency in the decision-making processes surrounding network       shutdowns and platform blocking and complete disregard for any accountability has resulted in an obvious     erosion of trust between the state and its citizens.

“We are also dismayed by reports of throttling of VPNs, undermining people’s access to             information and right to privacy,” it added.