ISLAMABAD: A new law in Pakistan aimed at regulating social media will “further tighten” the government’s grip on the “heavily controlled digital landscape” in the South Asian country, global human rights watchdog Amnesty International said on Friday.
Pakistan’s National Assembly, lower house of parliament, introduced and passed the amendments to the Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) on Thursday. The amendments were presented in the Senate, the upper house, on Friday and were forwarded to a relevant committee for consideration. After their passage from both houses, the draft will be sent to the president to be signed into a law.
The new regulations will set up a social media regulatory authority that will have its own investigation agency and tribunals, according to a draft on the parliament’s website. Such tribunals will be able to try and punish offenders with prison sentences of up to three years and fines of two million rupees ($7,200) for dissemination of “false or fake” information.
Pakistan’s Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar told parliament on Thursday the law was introduced to block “false and fake” news on social media, which he said had no specific regulations to govern it.
“The amendment introduces a criminal offense against those perpetrating so-called ‘false and fake information’ and imposes a maximum penalty of three years’ imprisonment with a fine. The vague and ambiguous framing of some elements of the offense together with a history of the PECA being used to silence dissent raises concerns that this new offense will chill what little is left of the right to online expression in the country,” Babu Ram Pant, Amnesty International’s deputy director of campaigns for South Asia, said in a statement.
“Presented in the absence of any consultation or debate, the amendment also expands the powers previously available to the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority through the newly created Social Media Regulation and Protection Authority. These provisions grant authorities power to block and remove content based on vague criteria, which will violate the right to freedom of expression and fail to meet standards of proportionality and necessity under international human rights law.”
Pant said the developments were in step with Pakistan’s deployment of “intrusive” digital surveillance technologies and laws that “fail to incorporate any human rights safeguards,” calling on authorities to immediately withdraw the amendments and instead engage in a consultative process with civil society to amend PECA to bring it in line with international human rights law.
The Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, passed in 2016, triggered widespread criticism from human rights organizations and activists for its potential for “harmful impact” on the right to freedom of expression and access to information in Pakistan.
Reporters Without Borders, an organization that promotes and defends press freedom, ranked Pakistan low on its 2024 World Press Freedom Index, at number 152. The group also says Pakistan is one of the most dangerous places for journalists to work.
Separately on Friday, Pakistan’s Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) President Afzal Butt said the government had not consulted any journalistic bodies before introducing the PECA amendments, adding he believed they were intended to gag freedom of speech and intimidate journalists and media outlets.
“We reject this unilateral decision by the government to set up any such tribunals,” Butt told Reuters. “We also are in favor of regulations, but, you know, a law enforcement agency or a police officer can’t decide what is false or fake news.”
The PFUJ said in a statement it would launch countrywide rallies against the new law next week and that if the law was not withdrawn, it would stage a sit-in protest outside parliament.
New Pakistan law to ‘further tighten’ government’s grip on social media — Amnesty International
https://arab.news/mmjkv
New Pakistan law to ‘further tighten’ government’s grip on social media — Amnesty International
- The new law aims to set up a social media regulatory authority that will have its own investigation agency and tribunals
- These tribunals will be able to try and punish offenders with prison sentences of up to three years and fines of Rs2 million
Pakistan and Muslim nations condemn Israeli raid on UN agency office in East Jerusalem
- Statement follows storming of UNRWA’s headquarters, which UN officials called part of ‘months of harassment’
- Muslim nations cite Gaza’s humanitarian crisis, call for international funding to preserve the agency’s operations
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and seven other Muslim-majority countries on Friday condemned a raid by Israeli police and municipal officials who forcibly entered the headquarters of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees in East Jerusalem last Monday, calling the agency’s work vital to the well-being of Palestinians.
The incident in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood cut the communications of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) and resulted in the seizure of furniture and IT equipment, prompting the agency’s top official to describe it as part of “months of harassment.”
Israel has long accused UNRWA of aiding Hamas or allowing its members to operate within the agency — allegations the UN agency denies — and has pushed to curtail its role in Gaza and Jerusalem.
The Israeli raid on its office prompted foreign ministers of Pakistan, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and the United Arab Emirates to issue a joint statement, calling it a “violation of international law.” The leaders of all these countries had discussed the Gaza peace plan with US President Donald Trump in New York in September before it was unveiled.
“The Ministers condemn the storming of the UNRWA headquarters in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem by Israeli forces, as this attack represents a flagrant violation of international law and the inviolability of UN premises, which constitutes an unacceptable escalation, and violates the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice dated 22 October 2025, which clearly states that Israel, as an occupying power, is under an obligation not to impede the operations of
UNRWA and, on the contrary, to facilitate them,” the statement said.
“The Ministers stress that UNRWA’s role is irreplaceable,” it added. “No other entity possesses the infrastructure, expertise, and field presence required to meet the needs of Palestinian refugees or to ensure continuity of services at the necessary scale. Any weakening of the Agency’s capacity would have grave humanitarian, social, and political repercussions across the region.”
The statement said UNRWA remained essential to delivering food, relief items and basic services in Gaza as the enclave faced an unprecedented humanitarian crisis. It noted the UN General Assembly’s recent vote to renew the agency’s mandate for another three years reflected broad confidence in its work.
UNRWA, established in 1949 under UN General Assembly Resolution 302, provides education, health care, social services and emergency aid to millions of Palestinian refugees across its areas of operation.
Its mandate has been repeatedly renewed in recognition of the absence of a political settlement that would resolve the refugee question.
