Websites blocked by the PTA can be easily accessed through a proxy
SUKKUR: Recently, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) blocked 900,000 websites. I personally believe that restricting people from freedom of choice is not a good decision on the part of the government.
What happened after YouTube was banned in Pakistan in 2012? It could still be watched using different browsers. While it can be argued that Pakistan is at the top in the list of porn viewership. Many porn sites were blocked. But restricting people from doing what they wish to do would only serve to pique their curiosity. Those who have to do it will do it one way or the other. The government also needs to understand that the websites blocked by the PTA can be easily accessed through a proxy.
Those who grew up in the 1980s and 1990s will relate to how it was wonderful to watch films through Video Home System (VHS)-based devices and listen to audio songs from cassette tape, although it was costly to access those amusements. The fact that it was not accessible to all made it more special.
By following the suit of a few undemocratic nations, blocking websites can never be the right decision. People need to be sensitised to their moral responsibilities. If still surfers want to use it for immoral purposes, the government must grant them enough freedom. Furthermore, by blocking the URLs, the government is giving the unimportant websites the importance they hardly deserve.
Riaz Mahar
Published in The Express Tribune, October 20th, 2019.
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