Pakistan to Ban VPNs…but not XXXs

In a move to monitor and restrict all web traffic to and from Pakistan, the authorities have decided to ban virtual private networks (VPNs), according to major news outlets . A legal notice sent to all internet providers (ISPs) by the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority orders the ISPs to inform authorities of any VPN use for web browsing. Pakistan’s 20 million internet users have previously been banned from popular social networks, such as Facebook, because of blasphemous material about the prophet Muhammad. All internet traffic in the country travels through the Pakistan Internet Exchange, which can be intercepted by the military and civil intelligence agencies. Recently the regulator made it impossible for Pakistanis to access the website of Rolling Stone magazine, after it published an article on the high proportion of the national budget in Pakistan that goes on its military. [1].

While the reasons may be partially benevolent or even understandable, this does bring out another question which is seldom raised in Pakistan: the unrestricted availability of internet pornography [2]. While it is “officially” banned in Pakistan, it is not difficult to find smalltime booksellers displaying lad mags on handcarts or at some kerbs, movie rentals renting out skin flicks, CD/DVD shops vending “top-shelf” stuff or indeed the all pervasive dot com smut [4]. However, online porn is the most freely available and easily accessible variety (i.e. without the need to conceal glossy mags, video cassettes, CDs or other tangibles). Indeed, Fox has also rated the “Islamic” Republic as the most porn-googling nation [3]. While the method of the survey was questionable (read the comment section at [3]), the Pakistani net-goers’ porn-addiction is not made out of thin air.

The question is that if youtube, facebook and VPNs can be banned on moral grounds, why can’t the government enforce a ban on pornographic websites, at least the well known ones, like Saudi Arabia, China or Gaza does [5, 6, 7]? The most common objection raised by citizens or net-goers is that it is not possible to ban every single x-rated site. This is indeed, sadly, true, but it is also true that all most all pornographic websites are owned by less than a hundred companies and hence it is easy to target the bulk of online porn. Therefore, the government should do as much as it can by:

1) Banning the pornographic websites already banned by other countries.

2) Launching a community based effort, where members of the net community can report such sites. For example, Saudi Arabia provides its net users with an online form here for blocking/unblocking websites based on their perceptions.

Another common objection is that viewing porn is a personal freedom and hurts no one. Firstly, Islam [the state religion] prohibits any form of nudity or immorality whether practiced or observed:

”Say (O Muhammad SAW): “(But) the things that my Lord has indeed forbidden are Al­Fawâhish (great evil sins, every kind of unlawful sexual intercourse, etc.) whether committed openly or secretly, sins (of all kinds), unrighteous oppression, joining partners (in worship) with Allâh for which He has given no authority, and saying things about Allâh of which you have no knowledge.” [Al-Qur'aan 7:33]

Secondly, even non Muslim experts testify that viewing pornography leads to break up of marriages, or at least difficult relationships with spouses and other social problems [ 8 , 9]. Even though Pakistan has made half-hearted attempts at banning online smut before [10,11], it is high time that civil activists should join forces to get this disease banned or at least restricted from entering and destroying our homes. There is already a court case pending [12], which is a good first step. What is needed is concerted and serious online and offline activism.

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