Pakistan Drops YouTube Ban

Government Says "Blasphemous" Video Has Been Removed From Popular Internet Site

(CBS/AP)  Pakistan's telecommunications regulator said Tuesday it has lifted restrictions on YouTube that knocked out access to the video-sharing Web site in many countries for up to two hours over the weekend.

The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority told Internet service providers to restore access to the site after the removal of what it called a "blasphemous" video clip, authority spokeswoman Nabiha Mahmood said.

Pakistan ordered the site blocked on Friday over a clip featuring a Dutch lawmaker who has said he planned to release a movie portraying Islam as fascist and prone to inciting violence against women and homosexuals.

A Pakistani official told CBS News reporter Farhan Bokhari that an investigation was being conducted to determine why Pakistan's action resulted in the blocking of YouTube in other nations.

“Frankly we are all a bit puzzled because nobody imagined that such an action in Pakistan could lead to the kind of reaction we saw,” the official said.

Mahmood said the Pakistani authority had posted a complaint through the Web site - a facility open to any registered user - but had not been in contact with the administrators of YouTube.com, which is owned by Internet giant Google, Inc.

While several other videos featuring the politician, Geert Wilders, would remain visible to Pakistani Internet users, Mahmood said the one which was removed had been "totally anti-Quranic" and "very blasphemous."

She said it promoted Wilders' upcoming movie, but provided no details about its content.

The authority aimed to restrict the site only in Pakistan, but the move inadvertently cut access for many of the world's Internet users for up to two hours on Sunday.

YouTube said the next day that it was caused by a network in Pakistan.

"We are investigating and working with others in the Internet community to prevent this from happening again," YouTube said in an e-mailed statement.

Mahmood said the Pakistani regulator carried no responsibility for "technical hitches" which may have lead to problems elsewhere. She said it was not clear how that occurred.

Pakistani officials hope to prevent a repeat of violent anti-Western protests that erupted in early 2006 after a Danish newspaper published cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad regarded by many Muslims as offensive.

Danish editors reignited the controversy earlier this month by reprinting a cartoon that shows the prophet wearing a bomb-shaped turban.

On Tuesday, about 300 students rallied at a university in the Pakistani city of Multan carrying banners denouncing Denmark, the United States and Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf. It was the latest in a series of small protests by Islamic students in the country.

Umer Abbasi, a leader of the protest, urged all Muslim countries to follow Pakistan in blocking offensive material on the Internet.

"If you look deeply, America can be seen behind all anti-Muslim moves around the world," Abbasi told the crowd, who later burned Danish and American flags.

Abdullah Riar, Pakistan's minister for information technology and telecommunications, said authorities wanted to prevent Islamic hard-liners from seizing on the Wilders clips.

"We are already in the spotlight on the issue of intolerance and extremism and terrorism and this is something that somebody is doing by design to excite and insinuate Islamic sentiments," Riar said.

He said the indirect effects were "very sad, very unfortunate. We have nothing against the YouTube site itself."

[wolfenok]

Amazing... No, it''s not amazing, but also it not depends to me, because I use VPN tunnel, by www.strongvpn.com VPN account. It requires some fee, but also it%u2019s not much for the advantages it gives. I can use now my laptop and iPod to download any videos from YouTube and other services without any permission. Used proxy before, but it seems to me that this service is much better.

[tmittelstaed]

"said he planned to release a movie portraying Islam as fascist and prone to inciting violence against women and homosexuals."

For all those crying censorship, do you really believe this? Because if so, you need to go visit Germany and the Holocaust sites, you have no idea what real Fascists are. No religion today even remotely resembles that.

As the regulator said, "this is something that somebody is doing by design to excite and insinuate Islamic sentiments"

It''s no different than the so-called "art" of Andres Serrano, (ie: **** Christ) which is nothing more than a scam to extract thousands of dollars from NEA for 50 cents worth of film and a plastic cup.

Freedom of speech does not give license for yelling Fire in a crowded theatre, nor for outrageously lying or pulling scams.

[pilgrimsway-2009]

johngoodnews at 07:16 PM : Feb 26, 2008
But its wrong what you imply!

[ivandrago]

Like I''ve said to my friends, I believe that religion is an evolutionary vestigial limb. A god idea helped fill a void in knowledge that early man could never solve. Humanity could then focus on bettering itself. YouTube clips pointing out the blaring fallacies of organized religion are good for everybody with an open mind. While it hardens true believers even more, I think it''s influenced alot of "fench-sitters" to get off the blissful crack pipe that is religion.

[pilgrimsway-2009]

johngoodnews at 07:16 PM : Feb 26, 2008
Hey thats pretty good!

[johngoodnews]

I was wondering what it would be like in America if we had christians running around and screaming and threatening to kill people who made fun of their version of god.

[pilgrimsway-2009]

In America today we have this knight in shinny armor coming towards us promising us deliverance! He never fought a battle, He was present when the other knights fought the battles, and keeps His armor very shinny. When He is with the other knights He speaks as one who fought battles, remember now He never did He was only present, that He can conquer lions and dragons and bring this land America to tranquility. The other knights ask Him of His experience and He just points to the fact that He has shinny armor. These other knights see His shinny armor and wonder why this so called knight calls Himself a knight. This knight in shinny armor states %u201CI can bring CHANGE%u201D. The people without experience in fighting the real battles on issues are transfix on His shinny armor that they do not bother with the issue that He has no experience. The people see this knight as their hope. They point to the other knight who is in charge for now and say this is the reason why we need a knight with shinny armor (with no experience) the knight who is there now had no experience either and we want another one like Him!!!!!!!!!!!

[rf35]

I''''m singingrick!

Posted by singingrick at 05:36 PM : Feb 26, 2008

Not to be confused with the original "singinrick," who is actually kinda fun to argue with, in a twisted sort of way.

[soubaptist1]

All religions are simply man''s feeble attempt to confront the horror of existance. IF there is a " higher power " we will only know certainty at the instance of our individual death. Too late, Too late.
Believe as you will, I wish you the best of luck.

[singingrick]

I''m singingrick!

[rf35]

RowdyTexan2, I''m not saying it never happens here, but you have to admit that it''s not as bad as any Islamic country. Usually, it''s a result of some nitwit trying to self-censor his/her own netowrk''s broadcast. I''m not overly familiar with the case you mention, but the government did not take the network down and arrest those responsible for attempting the broadcast, it was only locally "lost." As for charges of the Web-based "attacks" on the journalists, I guess I missed those altogether. Never a big fan of 60 Minutes, anyway. If this were a Muslim nation, the media would doubtless be state-run in the first place.

[irliberal]

Kind of like how secularist liberals here in America make fun of Christianity and mock it all the time, all while letting other "religions" slide.

Posted by singinrick at 02:00 PM

As I have stated many, many times, I view all religions as absolutely, equivalently, and resolutely vile, corrupt and dangerous. Christianity pushers are the ones that get in my face the most often, so that''s who I most often push back at, that is all. Next!

[irliberal]

In the USA, if you gathered up all the right wing radio hosts and their audiences and stuck them in a country and told them to form their own government, you''d get Pakistan. Ridiculous backwards fools.

[rf35]

singinrick said: Kind of like how secularist liberals here in America make fun of Christianity and mock it all the time, all while letting other "religions" slide.

I''ll have you know that I mock all religions equally. Besides, I thought you didn''t like "religion," either.

[rowdytexan2]

stop trying to equivocate their BS with anything in the west,,, it does not hold up


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Posted by terrorislam0 at 03:06 PM : Feb 26, 2008

Now now, I was just pointing out that censorship can happen here too. Don''t get your undies in an uproar.

[denn034]

Censorship is wrong! People should have the right to be blasphemous if they want to. Shame on Pakistan!

[rowdytexan2]

Once again, an Islamic nation proves there is no room in their world for free thought. Only absolute control by the religious/government leadership. This is the reason we have the First Amendment in the US Constitution. While we may not like everthing that is said, the alternative is Pakistani-style oppression of ideas not approved by the government/church.


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Posted by rf35 at 11:14 AM : Feb 26, 2008

Oh yeah, just like the shutdown of the cablenetwork in the US when they were showing the presentation on how the Neocons sent Seigelmann to prison on false charges.

[artemisdiana-2009]

How about we forget all this petty bickering, and immediately call in ALL our foreign aid loans to Pakistan from day one, payable IN FULL in 24 hours, or we freeze all their accounts with the world bank?!?!? That should shut those b***ards up for awhile!

[gunownerdan]

When your religion is threatened by teddy bears and cartoons, maybe it''s time to find a less-pathetic faith?

[mediapreachr]

Let me tell you why the paks took down Youtube-there was a video of the singer Aishwara(indian actress),showing a little leg and dancing provocatively.
This was distracting the masses,as they were actually having fun instead of gathering like sheep and trampling each other.