Officials of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party say that Internet and social media services were disrupted just hours before the launch of the party’s election manifesto and funding raising campaign.
An independent global internet watchdog promoting digital rights, cybersecurity, and governance has confirmed the shutdown. "The incident is consistent with previous social media filtering events which have all been imposed during opposition party rallies or speeches by opposition leader Imran Khan," said NetBlocks. "Such nation-scale social media targeting political activities is almost unprecedented at this scale”, the watchdog added.
The Human Rights Council of Pakistan has condemned the disruption as "a violation of international law".
Khan and most senior PTI leaders have been rejected as candidates for the February 8 vote, which they blame on the military-led establishment.
The cricketer-turn politician, Khan, was ousted last year after a parliamentary vote of no confidence and later arrested over a number of charges, including corruption. The defiant PTI supremo then took a barb on the country’s military and the opposition, accusing them of engineering his removal via a US-backed conspiracy.
Pakistan, which allied itself with the Western Bloc led by the United States, has witnessed several military coups since its independence in 1947. Most coup leaders have had good ties with Washington.
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