What happened: On Thursday, the Government of Pakistan presented some rules that define how social media will be governed. After the decision came out many big tech companies announced that these regulations would make it difficult for them to continue their operations in the country. Tech companies are threatening to pull out their stocks from Pakistan. Background: The rules titled, Rules for Removing and Blocking Illegal Online Content (Procedure, Monitoring and Safeguards) 2020, were set in the framework of the Prevention of Electronic Crime (Peca) Act 2016. In simplest form these laws will be subjected to any content; which doesn’t align with the state narrative or provoke profanity. What people are saying: Asia Internet Coalition (AIC) expressed its alarm over the extent of the new law targeting internet companies, as well as the government’s “opaque process” by which these rules were developed.
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