A court of sessions and districts of Islamabad suspended on Saturday an order of the lower court of blocking 27 YouTube channels in the direction of five more channels, one day after a similar detention in the channels of two journalists.
It arose on Tuesday that an Islamabad court had ordered YouTube last month to block 27 channels to spread “false, misleading and defamatory content against the government and the armed forces. The sanctioned stories were being directed by journalists, political commentators and influencers of social networks in Pakistan and abroad.
On Friday, a district court and sessions of Islamabad admitted two review requests, presented by journalists Matiuallah Jan and Asad Ali Toor, against the order of the judicial magistrate that blocks 27 YouTube channels, suspending the prohibition of the two petitioners. District judge and additional sessions (ADSJ) Muhammad Afzal Majoka heard the two review appeals and ordered the suspension in a written order of a page for each request.
Six more of those affected had appealed today against the order of the lower court. Adsj Majoka heard the case and granted a relief similar to the following five people: Makhdoom Shahabuddin, Orya Maqbool Jan, Abdul Qadir, Uzair Anwar and Umair Rafique.
The Court postponed the procedures in Habib Akram’s request until July 14 due to the lack of availability of the petitioner. According to short orders, seen by Dawn.comThe petitioners argued that they were not even given a prior notice and that the prohibition violated article 10-A of the Constitution. The judge agreed that no notices were issued to the petitioners before the blocking order was approved and the point needed greater consideration.
The prohibition order caused criticism of several legal and digital rights groups.
On Wednesday, Interior State Minister Talal Chaudhry said the owners of these channels would face criminal actions.
The Digital and Democracy Rights Forum (FDRD) and the Association of Lawyers of the Supreme Court (SCBA) sentenced the decision on Wednesday, qualifying it as a “shameless violation” of fundamental rights and an assault on press freedom.
The Pakistan Human Rights Commission (HRCP) has also expressed concern about the prohibition, stating: “The total blockade of complete channels, instead of addressing specific cases of illegal or odious discourse according to due process, combines dissent with criminal activity.”
“The constitutional right to freedom of expression is fundamental not only for individual freedom but also to guarantee the responsibility of the government, to promote debate and allow the public to access a diversity of points of view,” said the HRCP, urging “precise and proportional” interventions “against hate discourse.
On March 20, Farhan Malick, the founder of the Media Agency Raftar and a former news director in TV SamaaHe was arrested in Karachi and reserved under a sin, as well as in the Pakistan Criminal Code in a case related to the supposed anti-state content on his YouTube channel.
The arrest was received with generalized criticisms from media agencies, as well as rights activists.
He was granted bond in April in the many cases against him related to allegedly “anti-state” content and data theft through a call center.
In May, the Telecommunications Authority of Pakistan lifted the prohibition of X after the platform was inaccessible for users for more than a year. The social networks platform was blocked in February 2024, about 10 days after the general elections, while the caregiver’s government was still in power.
