KARACHI: The death of a Pakistani teenager who shot himself in a fake suicide stunt has put a spotlight on accidents related to video app TikTok, with both authorities and the social media platform vowing to take action.
On Tuesday, 19-year-old Hamidullah Khan from the northwestern Swat Valley was killed as he pretended to shoot himself for a TikTok video recorded by his friends. He had more than 8,000 followers on TikTok and posted nearly 600 clips. Police confirmed his death was an accident as he fired a bullet thinking the gun wasn’t loaded.
"Initial investigation confirms that it was purely an accident and no malafide intention on the part of his friends has been found," Deputy Superintendent of Police Bacha Hazrat told Arab News on Friday.
It was not the first incident in which Pakistani TikTok users have lost their lives in the name of content. Since December 2019, at least 11, mostly teenagers, have died and six others were injured after their attempts to make TikTok videos went horribly wrong. Some of them had fallen from rooftops, accidentally shot themselves, or were hit by trains.
Information Technology and Telecommunication Minister Syed Aminul Haque says the Chinese video platform and Pakistani authorities will have to discuss measures to prevent similar incidents.
"I will direct Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to immediately sit with relevant TikTok authorities in Pakistan to deliberate steps which may stop such incidents," Haque told Arab News on Friday. "PTA will sit with TikTok to identify, delete and discourage the videos which may endanger the lives of youths."
A TikTok spokesperson said the company has already taken action after the Swat incident: "We have already taken action against the content in question and our teams are working to ensure the removal of any shares on the platform."
"Our profound sympathies go out to the young man and his family. At TikTok, we have no higher priority than protecting the safety of our community," the spokesperson told Arab News in a written statement.
But the words offer little consolation to Khan's parents and five-year-old sister who for the past few days has been asking where he had gone.
"We cannot tell our little doll that her brother has returned to God and left her forever," the teenager's father, Allauddin Khan, told Arab News.
"We are devastated," he said. "He was studying in intermediate and was brilliant student. He loved books and we wanted him to become a doctor. But he also loved using mobile phone and it took his life."
"Don’t let your children go near weapon. Keep an eye on them. Mine lost his life by going after a useless thing."
