Since the promulgation of the Ordinance amending the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) 2016 by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government, the law has been receiving a lot of criticism from the Opposition, civil society, journalists and even government allies.
In a joint statement, the Opposition termed PECA “fascist and dictatorship”. The statement was released after a meeting between Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leadership, reports Geo News.
Leader of the Opposition Shehbaz Sharif took to Twitter and said, “So-called ‘defamation’ amendment to PECA, promulgated by presidential ordinance, shows the real fascist face of the ruling clique.”
PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto- Zardari said that freedom of expression and press is being muzzled under the guise of preventing false news. “Khan Sahib himself is the biggest leader of fake news mafia in Pakistan,” said Bilawal.
PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz was of the view that PECA is going to be used against the government.
While condemning the Ordinance, PPP’s Senator Sherry Rehman said that such laws are unacceptable.
Lawyer Reema Omer tweeted, “With PECA Ordinance, PM Imran Khan has proven yet again that he is a predator of free speech.”
However, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) restrained the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) from making arrests under Section 20 of PECA despite its promulgation by President Arif Alvi on Sunday, reports Dawn.
Federal Minister of Information Technology and Telecommunication Amin Ul Haque has written to Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, urging him to either withdraw or review the Ordinance.
