John
05-24-2010, 07:29 PM
Pakistan has blocked access to YouTube because of "sacrilegious" content in a growing internet crackdown against sites believed offensive to the country's majority Muslim population.
The move against the video-sharing website came a day after the government blocked access to Facebook amid anger over a page on the social networking site that encourages users to post images of Islam's Prophet Mohammed. Islam prohibits any images of the prophet.
Regulators the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA) did not point to specific material on YouTube that prompted it to block the site, only citing "growing sacrilegious contents."
The government acted against both Facebook and YouTube after it failed to persuade the websites to remove the "derogatory material," it said.
It asked representatives from the two websites to contact the Pakistani government to resolve the dispute in a way that "ensures religious harmony and respect".
The PTA said it has blocked more than 450 internet links containing offensive material, but it is unclear how many happened in the last two days.
The government blocked Facebook after a group of Islamic lawyers won a court order requiring officials to restrict access to the site until May 31. It was unclear if the ban against YouTube would also be temporary.
The Facebook page "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day!" encourages users to post images of the prophet on May 20 to protest at threats made by a radical Muslim group against the creators of the animated American television series "South Park" for depicting Mohammed in a bear suit during an episode earlier this year.
The page sparked protests from radical students in Pakistan, with some holding signs urging Islamic holy war against those who blaspheme the prophet.
A series of cartoons of the prophet published in a Danish newspaper in 2005 sparked violent protests by Muslims around the world, including in Pakistan, and death threats against the cartoonists.
The move against the video-sharing website came a day after the government blocked access to Facebook amid anger over a page on the social networking site that encourages users to post images of Islam's Prophet Mohammed. Islam prohibits any images of the prophet.
Regulators the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA) did not point to specific material on YouTube that prompted it to block the site, only citing "growing sacrilegious contents."
The government acted against both Facebook and YouTube after it failed to persuade the websites to remove the "derogatory material," it said.
It asked representatives from the two websites to contact the Pakistani government to resolve the dispute in a way that "ensures religious harmony and respect".
The PTA said it has blocked more than 450 internet links containing offensive material, but it is unclear how many happened in the last two days.
The government blocked Facebook after a group of Islamic lawyers won a court order requiring officials to restrict access to the site until May 31. It was unclear if the ban against YouTube would also be temporary.
The Facebook page "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day!" encourages users to post images of the prophet on May 20 to protest at threats made by a radical Muslim group against the creators of the animated American television series "South Park" for depicting Mohammed in a bear suit during an episode earlier this year.
The page sparked protests from radical students in Pakistan, with some holding signs urging Islamic holy war against those who blaspheme the prophet.
A series of cartoons of the prophet published in a Danish newspaper in 2005 sparked violent protests by Muslims around the world, including in Pakistan, and death threats against the cartoonists.