Peshawar High Court lifts ban on TikTok

By News Desk

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court on Thursday lifted its ban on video-sharing application TikTok and directed the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to ensure that no immoral content be uploaded on it.

On March 11, Peshawar High Court Chief Justice Qaiser Rashid Khan ordered the PTA to ban the app for promoting “immoral and objectionable content” on it.

During a hearing, the court, while unbanning the app, directed the officials to not allow uploading of any immoral content on it. PTA Director General Tariq Gandapur told the court that the regulator had taken the issue up with the app’s administrators, who had also appointed a focal person for the purpose in the country.

The Justice Khan remarked that a system should be established that could distinguish between good and bad content. “If the PTA takes action, people will not upload immoral content anymore,” he added.

Meanwhile, TikTok released a statement saying that it was “pleased” to be once again available to Pakistan. “This is a testament to TikTok’s continued commitment to enforcing our community guidelines to promote a safe and positive community online,” a spokesperson for the platform said. “We want to acknowledge PTA’s support and ongoing productive dialogue, and recognise their care for the digital experience of Pakistani users, which goes a long way in assuring a stable, enabling environment to allow us to explore further investment in Pakistan, and to keep open vital economic opportunities for Pakistani creators through TikTok,” the statement added.

Reacting to the development, Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry said: “My submission is let’s be very careful while taking decisions that may affect the economic future of Pakistan. We need a framework to encourage international companies so to make Pakistan their investment hub.”