PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has said that the original draft of the recent amendments to Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act (Peca) was very strict, but his party suggested many changes to dilute it, Express News reports.
In an interview after addressing the Oxford Union, the PPP chairman stated that the PPP has always been against the original draft of Peca law, adding that former prime minister Imran Khan was the first to try such a harsh legislation.
The government strengthened Peca with new amendments to tackle fake news and unlawful online content. The proposed Electronic Crimes Prevention (Amendment) Act 2025 introduced severe penalties, including up to three years in prison and fines of Rs2 million for spreading disinformation.
Bilawal stated that the Peca law was not an ideal law, but it was significantly better than the initial version that was proposed. He added that the law had been improved after consultations. He said that the original draft included even harsher penalties, such as a 30-year sentence.
"The original draft of Peca was very harsh. Many amendments were made to the act only because of the hard work and efforts of the PPP," he said. He acknowledged that "Pakistan faces various challenges, as democracy is not strong in Pakistan," he added.
He reiterated that the PPP played a role in improving the Peca law and ensuring that it did not undermine democracy. He also defended the 26th Constitutional Amendment, noting that while it had been modified from its original form, it still played a crucial role in strengthening democracy.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ