The right to protest is recognized the world over as a basic democratic freedom. Pakistan, as a democratic nation, recognizes this right for its citizens....
COVER STORY
The right to protest is recognized the world over as a basic democratic freedom. Pakistan, as a democratic nation, recognizes this right for its citizens. Article 16 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973 (as amended) grants every citizen the right “to assemble peacefully and without arms, subject to any reasonable restrictions imposed by law in the interest of public order.”
However, freedoms of assembly and association under Articles 16 and 17 of the Constitution of Pakistan are not unrestricted, and the state may impose reasonable restrictions” as per law in the interest of what it terms “public order.”
Under this exception, laws such as the Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance, 1960 have been used to curb public gatherings and arrest protestors. Further, Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), 1973 has also been used to restrict gatherings of more than five people to prevent “obstruction, annoyance or injury to any person lawfully employed, or danger to human life, health or safety, or a disturbance of the public tranquility, or a riot, of an affray.”
Pakistan is also a signatory to multiple international human rights covenants and treaties, including the 1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and by definition is liable to uphold the principles and rules of those agreements.
* Carry water for hydration. Moreover, in cases of tear gas deployment, use it to flush out the eyes – starting from the tear duct and washing outwards.
* Employ the buddy system to ensure no one is left behind in case of a stampede or confusion if the police arrive and attempt to disperse the crowd.
* Carry a fully-charged phone and share the location with a loved one before leaving for the protest.
* Disable any facial or fingerprint unlocks while enabling a passcode on the phone.
* Avoid carrying any devices that contain sensitive information.
* Wear a mask for protection against dirt and pollutants. It will also help obscure facial recognition if anyone records images or videos.
* Document any injuries caused by police through pictures or videos.
* Do not share images of fellow protestors on social media to avoid their presence being identified.
* Use pictures with blurred or obscured faces.
* Have a pre-defined exit strategy.
Disruption of internet and mobile networks has unfortunately become a commonplace medium to disrupt protests. In Pakistan, Internet shutdowns have been reportedly used to control protests. The government often employs section 54(3) of the Pakistan Telecommunications (Re-organization) Act, 1996 to shut down mobile networks.
App-based options to lessen the impact of network blocking include:
FireChat – An app that uses Bluetooth to exchange messages; available for both iOS and Android, with an effective range of 100m and 60m respectively.
Briar – A messaging app that uses Bluetooth or WiFi to keep information flowing in a crisis; available on Android only.
Bridgefy – A messaging app that allows users to send encrypted messages through Wi-Fi and Bluetooth; available for Android and iOS.
Note: These apps are suggested as a mitigation strategy. They are a solution to illegal interception of messages or as a complete countermeasure to internet disruption.
Some mobile phone extraction (MPE) tools may also access data stored online and even deleted data. For example, you may have old contacts stored in the cloud, which have been deleted from the phone itself.
Remember, your cloud data does not just reveal information about you, it can also reveal much about your friends, family, and anyone you interact with online, such as fellow protestors.
Examples of apps that store data in the Cloud include Slack, Instagram, Telegram, Twitter, Facebook, and Uber.
Keeping your device up to date means it will have the latest security features, which is likely the best way to prevent MPE and hacking.
While the most effective way of protecting against MPE is to not take a phone to a protest, it is an unrealistic solution. Indeed, not having a phone leaves the person vulnerable in other ways. It’s best to carry an alternate phone with minimum data.
Before going to a protest, you should be aware that even if you use end-to-end encrypted messaging through WhatsApp, if you back up your WhatsApp messages to the cloud, these encrypted backups could be accessed by the police using cloud extraction tools on your phone. Consider switching off cloud back-up in the applications on your phone that you use, and logging out of all cloud-based services.
IMSI stands for ‘international mobile subscriber identity’, a number unique to your SIM card. IMSI catchers are also known as ‘stingrays’.
An IMSI catcher pretends to be a mobile phone tower with superb signal strength, tricking mobile phones nearby to connect to it. It does not read data stored on a phone. Instead, it is used to work out your rough locationas well as intercept text messages and phone calls.
Some types of IMSI catchers can even enable the police to disrupt or prevent protests before they even happen. For example, they can help monitor or block your calls and messages, or even write and send someone messages pretending to be from you.
Messaging services such as Signal, WhatsApp, and Wire prevent the content of your text messages from being tracked by an IMSI catcher.
What is social media monitoring?
Social media monitoring refers to the monitoring, gathering, and analysis of information shared on social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Reddit, including content you post and data about your behaviour (such as what you like and share).
If you want to use social media while at a protest, you should consider switching off your location settings on the platform(s) you will be using. If you do decide to share protest images, do not tag individuals involved without their consent, as this could create a trail that police may rely on to place people at the protest.
If you want to upload your protest images to social media accounts, consider removing the EXIF data beforehand. EXIF data is metadata associated with your images that can reveal information such as the location, time, date, and device used.
However, footage can still be geolocated from background information (e.g. a monument or landmark). Hence, try to avoid identifiable backgrounds. If possible, upload pictures and videos only after you have left the location to safeguard against being tracked or followed. Also, use a VPN to upload any visual data you may have recorded.
What are police drones?
Drones are remotely controlled unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) of varying sizes. They usually come equipped with cameras and might be enabled with facial recognition technology (FRT). Drones can be equipped with speakers, surveillance equipment, and radar and communications interception tools, such as ‘IMSI catchers’.
What is Predictive Policing?
Predictive policing programs are used by the police to estimate where and when crimes are likely to be committed – or who is likely to commit them. These programs work by feeding historic policing data through computer algorithms.
For example, a program might evaluate data about past crimes to predict where future crimes will happen – identifying ‘hot spots’ or ‘boxes’ on a map.
Other predictive policing programs may suggest how people will behave. These programs are fed information about a person, and then they decide whether that person is likely to commit an offence.Any photos, videos or messages that you share about a protest on any online platform may be analysed by the police to identify protesters. Once identified, they can be added to watchlists or used to create profiles that feed into predictive policing tools.
If police have already classified you as someone likely to commit a crime, this may further be used to detain, arrest, or stop and search you during a protest.
Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (2016) Section 35 (2) directs officers dealing with devices and data to a) act with proportionality and b) take measures to protect the secrecy of any information system they have access to in exercising their power to search and seize.
Section 36 directs officers on how to deal with seized information systems including listing down what items have been seized and providing the list to the owner or possessor of the information systems and data.
Section 41 speaks to the confidentiality of the information and lays out a three-year imprisonment term and/or a fine of up to one million rupees for any person, service provider, or authorised investigation officer who discloses data without consent or in breach of contractual obligations with intent to cause or knowing he may cause harm, loss, gain to any person or compromise the confidentiality of such material or data.
Right to Information (RTI) Laws
Article 19A of the Constitution of Pakistan states: ‘Every citizen shall have the right to have access to information in all matters of public importance subject to regulation and reasonable restrictions imposed by law.’
Federal: Right of Access to Information Act 2017
Punjab: The Punjab Transparency and Right to Information Act 2013
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: KP Right to Information Act 2013
Sindh: Sindh Transparency and Right To Information Act 2016
Balochistan: Balochistan Right to Information Act 2021.
Individuals and organisations can approach Information Commissioners with regards to each jurisdiction to make requests for information.
