A person uses Skype app on his cell phone. PHOTO: AFP
The Sindh government announced a proposal calling for the temporary banning of four applications “to disrupt terrorist and criminal activities in the province, especially in the urban areas”.
During a press briefing in Karachi on Thursday, Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon announced the proposed decision to ban the multiplatform video conferencing service Skype, multi-media communication and instant messaging applications WhatsApp, Tango and Viber. The decision was taken during a meeting on law and order at the Chief Minister House the same day, he said.
The ban will be imposed for three months, provided the federal government approves its request.
“Sindh government has recommended to the federal government to block such software in order to detach the criminals from modern communication and make the Rangers-led targeted operation more successful.”
The minister apologised for expected inconvenience to the people, but said that precious lives were more important. “These software applications which are designed to run on smartphones and tablet computers are being used by the criminals for their nefarious designs.”
Referring to the recent investigation carried out by the Joint Interrogation Teams, comprising the police, Rangers and intelligence agencies, the minister said these applications enable terrorists to connect with their network of gangs and criminal groups via messages, images and free audio and video calling over the internet.
Meanwhile, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar said the federal government has not taken the decision to ban the applications yet. “I am personally not in favour of this ban. When I became interior minister, I ended the tradition of blocking mobile phone networks because this is not productive in counterterrorism,” he said in an official statement.
When we receive the proposal from the Sindh government, we will examine it and then decide accordingly, he said.
The Pakistan Peoples Party, the ruling party in Sindh, had been seeking a massive website blocking system since 2012, when they were in power at the centre. The five years of the PPP government had seen an unprecedented period in the growth of internet adoption and bans on social media networks in the country including Facebook.
More infamously, the country witnessed two spells of blocking the popular video-sharing website, YouTube. The second spell has continued for the past 374 days.
People begin confirming the news of the proposal on Whatsapp itself, one of the apps to be banned.
There was outrage on Twitter, the microblogging website. PPP members went all out to defend the proposal. Bilawal Bhutto Zardari claimed that only a certain elite class of Sindh, namely Karachi, will be affected and insinuated that they were overreacting.
Dear Burgers, Sorry abt Skype/Viber/Whtsapp. Excuse us while we catch some terrorists and save some lives. SMS for 3months. Sincerely BBZ
— BilawalBhuttoZardari (@BBhuttoZardari) October 3, 2013
Similarly, Sharmila Faruqi also thought it was a “small price to pay” if Karachi could be “cleansed of criminals”.
Small price to pay .. If we can cleanse Khi from criminals. Back to trunk calls, telegraph and chitthi for 3 months! :D
— Dr. Sharmila sahibah faruqui (Phd) s.i (@sharmilafaruqi) October 3, 2013
PPP member and former interior minister Rehman Malik had begun the ‘tradition’ of banning communication. He shut down cellular networks for extended periods on important national and religious holidays to ‘ensure the safety of the people’.
Malik was bombarded on Twitter from irate users over the Sindh government’s last proposal. He defended himself, saying he had no authority anymore. But he did say that the provincial government had no authority to ban apps as only the federal government can institute such bans.
For blocks on websites, each website is reviewed, on a case-by-case basis, by a federal inter-ministerial committee to evaluate web content. If it comes to a decision that a website should be blocked, the Ministry for Information Technology recommends the PTA to institute a ban.
Pakistan will not be the only nor the first country to ‘be threatened’ by open video conferencing and instant messaging applications, such as Skype, Whatsapp, and Viber. The services were banned in Saudi Arabia and UAE this year, with Vietnam being the latest one to consider the option.
The free apps are so popular in Pakistan that cellular companies advertise specific value package deals that allow unlimited use of these instant messaging apps, especially Whatsapp.
Karachi targeted action
During his press conference, Sharjeel Memon said the police and Rangers have conducted around 3,000 raids across Karachi. In these raids, 20 criminals have been killed, while criminals in the hundreds have been arrested.
Keeping in view the rampant fleeing of criminals from Karachi, it has been decided that now this targeted operation will be extended to the whole of Sindh from Friday, he announced.
Memon said the Sindh Government has decided to induct more investigation officers and prosecuting officers into the Sindh police force.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 4th, 2013.
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COMMENTS (27)
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Very correct move indeed.!!
Basically we are moving toward Stone Age ,so these sort of bans will help us move towards stone age quickly.
Moreover in order to accelerate the growth towards stone age,government has also decided to call all dinosaurs back..
These idiots either do not realize or simply do not care about the negative impact they'll be making on the economy by banning these services.
We're an IT services company based in Karachi and communicate with most of our foreign clients through Skype. There are hundreds of similar businesses like us which also rely on Skype for communication. Businesses like ours earn millions of dollars of precious foreign exchange for the country's economy.
We'd all be losing clients by the dozens if any such asinine actions are carried out.
Remarkable remittances from overseas Pakistani workers reached $13.92 billion by the fall of last fiscal year 2012-13, the highest ever and were increased by 50 percent during the first month of the new Fiscal Year 2013-14, said by Overseas Pakistanis Foundation (OPF) Managing Director. Look what expatriates do for Pakistan and what Government do for Expatriates. I don't want to add more, sensible people can understand, what I want to say.
Calling Karachites as Dear Burgers is helpful for those who are still under the impression that PP is a national party, not a cobbled outfit of Sindh' land lords; thanks BBZ
@Why: Oh wouldn't that be just too sensible of us?
@Dj: That may be so, but that's not the point. @BBZ What happened to freedom of expression??? Why don't you guys simply just ban us from living and have done with it once and for all?
why not improve our security system and BAN corruption?
why not BAN the easy availability of guns and explosive items?
why not make ourselves smarter than the terrorists(who are apparently less educated and against modernization but still making use of the technology) and make better use of technology in terms of locating theri activities rather then banning it?
why not be progressive rather than goign back to the stoneage?
if the terrorists are smart enougth to use whatsap n viber for their activities banning these apps wont stop them..they will find another solution..the IT world has all sorst off possibilities! why not ban internet n go back to stoneage! n LOL @ BBZ you are funny :)
All the crack heads have become leaders in Pakistan. Thats why I am a staunch disbeliever of democracy in for illiterate and sleeping nation! These waderas, jageer daars and slave of Zionist entities will send us in to stone age.
may be sindh govt afraid that India may send formula how to make Weapon of mass destruction ,sindh govt is ruled by rural based politician..who want to people their slave..
Woww..this country is becoming difficult to live in !
btw I am sure there must be 100s of others apps on android and iOS for video calling and messaging.
Why are these bans always directed towards Urban working class educated populations. Terrorists make bombs using fertilizers. can they regulate the buying and selling of fertilizers??
the logic by PPP government is, "Ban everything being used by the terrorists". By this logic, everything imaginable can be banned in future, terrorists eat food, wear clothes, drive cars and do all what makes up the everyday life.
Dear BBZ, Sharmila We would happily oblige if operation is held with equal zeal and intesity against Lyari gangsters. Period
Basically what Bilawal is saying is that only a few people use these services.. I guess a good foreign education is not analogous to intelligence. Bilwal definitely seeks to lack the latter. As far as sharmila farooqi is concerned, she offers justification for PPPs ineptitude by curtailing freedom. Of course its a small price to pay.. but isint that exactly what we heard when three dictators took over and subverted the constitution? Wasnt that a small price they offered in return for stability? I am stunned at the sheer idiocy, shortsightedness, sheep mentality, and disgusted at this stance. I am disgusted by the hypocrisy of the super elite like Bilawal raising fingers at other petty elites, who perhaps own a fraction of his wealth.
It is just three months. Its not like it is for ever. Take a chill pill.
I have always stood up for the PPP government, and despite its many failings I was an avid supporter. However this ban and Bilawal's tweet completely changed all that. It shows how weak and incompetent, and frankly stupid the PPP government in Sindh actually is. Every country in the world is moving forward it seems, except Pakistan...we are moving in the opposite direction, back to the stone age.
Looks like they need a cut in 3G cake. But seriously why Pakistanis are using Israeli Viber, giving Israelis their call info, location and smses for free?
I think we should also ban Pakistan Railways and other transportation services. This will surely immobilize the Terrorists.
Here is a crazy idea... Stop announcing the start date of any "cleansing operation". BTW there are tons of other apps/software that can be used for voice/video chatting. I say just ban the internet who needs all the information
Why not start with guns and ammonium nitrate (explosive) which are freely available?
At the first instance when celellular technology was spreading in the country, Government of Pakistan through licensing authority PTA did not bothered at all as whose is purchasing SIM Cards and how many.
These unregistered SIM Cards went into the hands of criminal and they used these unregistered SIM Cards upto its full extent in which thousands of people have been killed by the criminals and terrorists.
I have all the doubts that even after banning the social media applications, our law enforcement agencies would NOT be able to conduct successful operations, as in advance countries Police apprehend the culprits through the usage of social media networks more particularly through the IP address of the Internet, whereas, in Pakistan, our Police do not know as how to arrest a culprit through the usage of Internet and social media network.
For the sake of argument let me write it further that it is not only the criminals who are using the social media networks, but it is also the Police and other law enforcing agencies who are also using social media network.
If the capability of the criminals will be decreased by banning the social media network, at the same time, it will also decrease the capability of already incapable Police and other law enforcements agencies who despite having every facility, could not arrest the culprits and terrorists in Pakistan.
Now a days the cases of rape of young girls are also on the rise in the country.
For the information of Chief Minister of Sindh, let me elaborate that the parents of school and college going kids also use the same tools of social media network to know the whereabouts of their children.
I don't understand as how government takes abrupt decision which cannot be implemented, keeping in view of the basic facts and in the larger interest of the general public.
Oh sorry it's *Oovoo
@Ash: Poor people don't use Viber or Skype but nonetheless this is a stupid idea. Btw Google hangouts and Vudu can also be used for video calling and they are much better than Skype.
It would be great if they(PPP) exercise their intelligence in interior Sindh only and hold local elections soon so that Local representatives of urban Sindh can help solving metropolitan issues.
It would be an absurd and insane decision if approved! This shows sheer biasness and hatred towards urban population of Sindh who utilize these services for communication. My mother was almost in tears tonight when she heard about ban on Skype. That is the only application she can use to see me and speak to me as I live abroad. I am sure there will be thousands of such mothers who will be gravely hurt if this indeed gets implemented. I know for sure that it has nothing to do with security or catching criminals but just another way of sucking poor people so that they spend money on traditional PTCL calls.