Access to major social media platforms has been restricted in Pakistan since January 7, 2024, when its jailed former prime minister, Imran Khan, turned to the online world.
General elections, already delayed for several months, are expected to be held in Pakistan next month, on February 8. However, most leaders of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, including himself, have been barred from running as candidates. Thus, the party decided to launch a massive online campaign to disseminate his manifesto and raise funds. This decision is the reason why Internet access was interrupted for those in Pakistan.
Fortunately, it is possible to overcome this type of outage with a reliable VPN service, and many citizens have reportedly safely avoided the block until now. However, these latest developments shed another gloomy light on the country’s political direction.
Censorship of networks with political objectives
“Live metrics show a nationwide disruption on social media platforms across Pakistan, including X/Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube; the incident comes as persecuted former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s party, PTI, launches their election fundraising telethon. tweeted NetBlocks, the UK-based internet watchdog, on January 7.
Netblock founder and director Alp Toker explained that the measure was implemented a couple of hours before the start of the fundraising rally. The service was restored when the event ended, on Sunday starting at 20:00 UTC.
“While Internet outages and shutdowns are not uncommon around the world, Pakistan ranks high in network censorship for political purposes,” Toker told me. Indeed, these restrictions appear to echo previous social media filtering campaigns imposed during rallies or speeches given by opposition leader Imran Khan.
Authorities limited mobile internet connections along with major social media platforms last May to suppress widespread protests over Khan’s arrest. X, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube went dark in what Toker described to the BBC as “the most severe censorship we have tracked in Pakistan in recent times.”
Now, Toker has once again confirmed the seriousness of Pakistan’s censorship efforts with network providers across the country affected by so-called Just-in-Time filtering. “We have followed this type of measure on a national scale only in a few countries in the world, such as Venezuela, where Juan Guaidó’s speeches were attacked in a similar way to those of Imran Khan and the PTI events,” he told me.
Pakistan’s Human Rights Council also harshly criticized the move, calling it “a violation of international law.” The organization he wrote in a tweet: “HRC Pakistan believes that all political parties have the right to carry out their activities. In the context of elections, all political parties should get the basic right to freedom of expression. It is the responsibility of the government of Pakistan to uphold the rights fundamental.”
However, these disruptions did not stop citizens from attending the online rally, as many quickly resorted to tools to circumvent government-imposed restrictions. A VPN, short for virtual private network, is the most popular solution when it comes to internet outages, as it spoofs users’ IP addresses to grant access to geo-restricted content. Unlike similar software such as proxy services, VPNs also encrypt Internet connections to improve online anonymity.
Antonio Cesarano, head of product at Proton VPN, told me that the company has seen a 400% increase in signups as of January 6. He said: “We already have a significant user base in Pakistan due to a history of internet censorship. In the country, so this increase is particularly notable.”
“More specifically, this is the second time in recent months that we have seen internet outages coinciding with online events planned by the Pakistani opposition party, PTI,” he added. Authorities also reportedly reduced internet speeds and blocked access to major social media apps last month, to disrupt a large virtual PTI election rally.
However, it appears that the VPN peak is now over, and the provider has confirmed that it will see normal activity in Pakistan starting Monday, January 8.
Originally scheduled for November last year, a non-binding resolution postponed Pakistan’s general elections until next month amid an increase in security incidents as well as harsh weather conditions—Al Jazeera reported.
Cricket star-turned-prime minister Khan was first removed from office in April 2022 and then handed a three-year sentence for alleged corruption in August last year. Although a Pakistani appeals court suspended her prison sentence, she remains in prison accused of leaking state secrets. He denies all charges.
The government’s interim leader, Anwaar ul-Haq Kakar, is now expected to oversee the vote to ensure fair and transparent elections. However, such an outcome seems unlikely considering the latest politically motivated attack. On this point, speaking to VOA, Syed Zulfiqar Bukhari of PTI said, “Once again, PTI has a virtual event and once again, the Internet is down.
“What has happened and is happening in Pakistan in the name of democracy is a slap in the face to transparency.”
