ISLAMABAD: Minister for Interior Sheikh Rasheed has apologised for the temporary shutdown of social media services temporarily across the country on Friday.
the interior minister said, in a video statement on Twitter said WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook were suspended across the country as the government feared the members of a proscribed organization would call for protests after Friday prayers.
The minister said the government had defeated those spreading terrorism and inciting violence in the country and that it will try its utmost to ensure people are not caused any inconveniences related to social media in the future.
“The ones who prevented oxygen vans and ambulances from reaching hospitals during protests were crushed today. We have outlawed them the proscribed organization and we will move for their dissolution as well,” he added. The government will block their passports, identity cards, and bank accounts too, the interior minister concluded.
اسلام آباد : 16 اپریل2021
سوشل میڈیا سروسز کی عارضی معطلی سے متعلق بیان pic.twitter.com/IYVJD637Mg— Sheikh Rashid Ahmed (@ShkhRasheed) April 16, 2021
Earlier in the day, the Ministry of Interior directed the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to temporarily block access to social media platforms from 11am to 3 pm. “It is requested that immediate action may be taken on the subject matter,” the ministry said.
Shortly after, the PTA released an official statement saying, “In order to maintain public order and safety, access to certain social media applications has been restricted temporarily.”
Although the notification issued by the interior ministry did not mention a reason for the suspension, the development comes after several days of unrest in the country due to protests by the recently proscribed Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP).
Detained TLP chief Saad Rizvi, in a handwritten note shared by Special Assistant on Political Communication Shahbaz Gill on Thursday, urged his followers to maintain law and order and avoid blocking roads and highways.
The protests, organized in different cities, also caused massive traffic jams and distress to the citizens. On Thursday, the government had slapped a ban on the TLP. A notification declaring TLP as a proscribed organization was issued by the Ministry of Interior shortly after the federal cabinet approved a summary to ban the party.
