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Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif congratulating US President-elect Donald Trump after his poll victory has caused a row on social media after X (formerly Twitter) issued a community note against his post.
On November 6, after the US election results were out, Sharif, taking to X, wrote: “Congratulations to President-elect Donald Trump on his historic victory for a second term! I look forward to working closely with the incoming Administration to further strengthen and broaden the Pakistan-U.S. partnership.”
Soon after, the post was flagged with a Community Note on X that pointed out that the Prime Minister was accessing the platform using VPN, which, according to Pakistan’s legal framework, is in violation of national regulations.
“Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has banned X (formerly Twitter) in Pakistan. He is using a VPN to access X, which is unlawful according to Pakistani law,” the X Community Note read.
However, it is not clear if the PM did access the platform using X or tweeted from outside the country.
In April, Pakistan’s interior ministry had blocked access to X citing national security concerns.
Users in Pakistan had been reporting problems using X since mid-February.
“It is very pertinent to mention here that the failure of Twitter/X to adhere to the lawful directives of the government of Pakistan and address concerns regarding the misuse of its platform necessitated the imposition of a ban,” the ministry had said according to news agency Reuters.
It added: “The decision to impose a ban on Twitter/X in Pakistan was made in the interest of upholding national security, maintaining public order, and preserving the integrity of our nation.”
The ministry had also said that the decision to block X was taken after considering confidential reports from Pakistan’s intelligence and security agencies.
It further informed that “hostile elements operating on Twitter/X have nefarious intentions to create an environment of chaos and instability, with the ultimate goal of destabilising the country and plunging it into some form of anarchy”.
Speaking to Reuters, digital rights activist Usama Khilji said the block on X was designed to hinder the democratic accountability which he said a platform with instant updates of real-time information enables.
Marketing consultant Saif Ali told the news agency: “It has become nearly impossible to convince Pakistani advertisers to invest in Twitter for brand communications, due to the platform being throttled by governmental authorities.”
