OBAID ABBASI
–– Religious Affairs Ministry points out over eight thousand blasphemous material on social media
Ministry of Religious Affairs identified over eight thousand blasphemous material on the social media which has to be blocked by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), despite the ministry already pointing out this material to the authority, Pakistan Today has learnt.
A special complaint cell for the evaluation of blasphemous material on social media has been working in the ministry since 2013, which has identified over eight thousand blasphemous material on the social media, sources close to the development told Pakistan Today.
The cell has identified the material and forwarded to the authority which is bound to block such websites. “The ministry’s job is to point out blasphemous material on social media and PTA is the competent authority to block the websites,” the sources said. The cell has been functional since 2013 and has been forwarding the material to the PTA through e-portal.
On a regular basis, the cell figures out all kind of material which includes anti-state, sectarian, pornography and blasphemous, the sources said. According to the sources, 70 percent blasphemous material was pointed out on social media and 30 percent is related to the anti–state, sectarian and pornography was found on social media.
In this regard, a ministry’s internal meeting was held last week in which the progress was reviewed. However, the ministry expressed concerns of what they believe PTA seems slow to block such websites having unacceptable material. The ministry asked the authority to block such material from the website and recommended to update their e-portal.
The ministry also recommended that since blasphemous issue is not confined to Pakistan as whole Muslim world is being affected. Therefore, PTA should coordinate with Muslims world so a joint strategy could be adopted to protect the sanctity of Islam and Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). In its recommendation, the ministry asked PTA to coordinate with the telecommunication regularity authorities of different Muslim countries so issue could be resolved collectively.
It is noted that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has already directed PTA to block the blasphemous material. On the other hand, the matter is also pending before the Islamabad High Court (IHC) as Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui sought reply from the authority. Talking to Pakistan Today, Minister for Religious Affairs Sardar Muhammad Yousaf confirmed that the ministry has identified the blasphemous content and forwarded to the PTA which is bound to block the websites.
When contacted, PTA spokesperson Khurram Mehran said that the authority has blocked thousands of websites having blasphemous content and the practice would continue. He said that the authority also received recommendations from the religious ministry which are being considered.