IF the last PPP-led government at the centre richly deserved the ridicule heaped upon it for not lifting the curbs it imposed on YouTube, the current set-up in Sindh has elicited an equally strong response to its proposal to ban internet chat and telephony apps including Skype, WhatsApp, Tango and Viber. If the reasoning behind the continuing blockade on YouTube is incomprehensible — that it is not possible to filter out all objectionable material — the logic given for blocking off Voice Over Internet Protocol applications — ie instant messaging tools are used by criminals who cannot be traced — is just as difficult to fathom. After Thursday’s decision was taken at a meeting in Karachi, provincial Information Minister Sharjeel Memon said the blockade would make security operations more effective.

There is no doubt that Karachi’s law and order situation requires urgent intervention, but is this the best way to tackle the situation? While criminals may indeed be using VoIP apps, their number is dwarfed by that of ordinary, honest citizens who use them for all sorts of legitimate purposes — from keeping in touch with family and friends to conducting online interviews and conferences in lieu of their physical presence at a location. The Sindh government has asked that a ban be imposed for three months. If the authorities feel this move is vital to the success of security operations, they must make a strong case before the public for whom such restricted access amounts to a curtailment of civil liberties. There is a ray of hope though; the ban cannot be imposed unilaterally by the provincial government, and the request to do so has to be sent to the federal authorities. Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said that while such a request would be debated he was personally against a proposal that smacked of the previous government’s intermittent shutdowns of mobile network services for similar reasons. This is a more sensible approach. Pakistan needs to find ways of countering criminals other than by declaring war on modern communications systems.