Pakistan’s telecommunications authority on Wednesday restricted access to Wikipedia in the countrythe largest and most well-known online encyclopedia: in many areas of Pakistan the site has been unreachable for two days, and in others there are reports of slowdowns.
The authority explained that it took this decision because Wikipedia allegedly refused to remove some content that the Pakistani government judged blasphemous for Islam (which is the state religion in Pakistan). He did not specify what this content would be, but said the removal had been requested by a court. Access to Wikipedia in the country has been temporarily restricted for 48 hours, which will expire on Friday afternoon. The authority said that at the end of the day, if Wikipedia doesn’t remove the disputed content, the site could be blocked across the country. Wikipedia has not yet commented on Pakistan’s request.
Wikipedia is supposed to delete content in #Pakistan, otherwise it will be blocked by the PTA 🇵🇰. Another sad chapter of internet censorship is being written. It seems that blocking has already been implemented in some places in the country. You find more here: @OpenObservatory https://t.co/cZp2N4cPZ7 pic.twitter.com/YhA5oUVmyV
— Oliver Linow (@OliverLinow) February 2, 2023
