It is unfortunate that a single radical extremist group has been successful in creating havoc across Pakistan
KARACHI: Shutdown of practically all modes of information, from no coverage of the crackdown and protests on TV channels to barring access to social media platforms, such as Twitter and Facebook, by the authorities concerned had made the public paralysed. The crackdown on the three-week long sit-in at the Faizabad Interchange on Saturday, November 25th saw fallouts in other major cities of the country and after a long time the peaceful environment in Karachi was broken. The city was practically put at halt just like the days when it was ruled by the MQM.
It is unfortunate that a single radical extremist group has been successful in creating havoc across Pakistan, especially in Karachi where the law enforcement agencies had sworn to protect from shutdowns and chaos. But what worsened the situation was a complete shutdown of information portals that left citizens no choice but to be stranded where they were. Had there been access, they would have found alternative routes knowing where the protest is and where it is not. But seems like the authorities concerned like putting citizens under stress when they themselves are facing it.
Urooj Rashid
Published in The Express Tribune, November 27th, 2017.
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