LAHORE, Pakistan – Pakistan's government ordered Internet service providers to block Facebook on Wednesday amid anger over a page that encourages users to post images of Islam's Prophet Muhammad.
The page on the social networking site has generated criticism in Pakistan and elsewhere because Islam prohibits any images of the prophet. The government took action after a group of Islamic lawyers won a court order Wednesday requiring officials to block Facebook until May 31.
By Wednesday evening, access to the site was sporadic, apparently because Internet providers were implementing the order.
The Facebook page at the center of the dispute — "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day!" — encourages users to post images of the prophet on May 20 to protest threats made by a radical Muslim group against the creators of "South Park" for depicting Muhammad in a bear suit during an episode earlier this year.
In the southern city of Karachi, some 2,000 female students rallied demanding that Facebook be banned for tolerating the controversial web page. Several dozen male students held a rally nearby, with some holding signs that urged Islamic holy war against those who blaspheme the prophet.
"We are not trying to slander the average Muslim," said the information section of the Facebook page, which was still accessible Wednesday morning. "We simply want to show the extremists that threaten to harm people because of their Mohammad depictions that we're not afraid of them. That they can't take away our right to freedom of speech by trying to scare us into silence."
A series of cartoons of the prophet published in a Danish newspaper in 2005 sparked violent protests by Muslims around the world, including Pakistan, and death threats against the cartoonists.
In an attempt to respond to public anger over the Facebook controversy, the Pakistani government ordered Internet service providers in the country to block the page Tuesday, said Khurram Ali, a spokesman for the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority, which regulates the telecommunications network in the country.
But the Islamic Lawyers Forum asked the Lahore High Court on Wednesday to order the government to fully block Facebook because the site had allowed the page to be posted in the first place, said the deputy attorney general of Punjab province, Naveed Inayat Malik.
The court complied with the request and ordered the government to block the site until the end of May, Malik said.
Lawyers outside the courtroom hailed the ruling, chanting "down with Facebook."
Later in the day, the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority ordered all Internet service providers to block Facebook, it said in a press release.
It remains to be seen how successful the move will be at keeping people within Pakistan from accessing the site. Some countries, such as China, permanently ban Facebook. But citizens often have little trouble working their way around the ban using proxy servers and other means.
I'm trying to save all the pictures and spam them across the interwebs now
Capitalizt
DjWhooCares
Jake Benson
quote:
Originally posted by Nrg2Nfinit
lol, just look at all the pictures relating mohamed to a nazi, or muslims to nazis. Then you have a jew posting some reinforcement comment lol.
You dildo EVERYONE likens anyone they hate to Hitler. That has nothing to do with Jews. The Left wing likened Bush to Hitler and now the right wing is likening Obama to Hitler. And there's only one crazy Jew on that page that was going ape . The rest were Christians, Muslims, Atheists, and for some odd reason Krishnas.
Jake Benson
quote:
Originally posted by DjWhooCares
OMFG why where there even that many Muslims there to begin with? Poor Swedes were too intimidated by frantic baboons to even say anything.
Nrg2Nfinit
quote:
Originally posted by Jake Benson
You dildo EVERYONE likens anyone they hate to Hitler. That has nothing to do with Jews. The Left wing likened Bush to Hitler and now the right wing is likening Obama to Hitler. And there's only one crazy Jew on that page that was going ape . The rest were Christians, Muslims, Atheists, and for some odd reason Krishnas.
stop being a crazy jew :p anyways, lets continue to laugh at some of these funny pictures.
Jake Benson
omg your so being like hitler right now, ok
EddieZilker
quote:
Originally posted by Jake Benson
omg your so being like hitler right now, ok
If only Hitler's propagandists could have used such a flexible comparison - the world would be speaking German, free of Jews, and awash in self-reference paradox.
Nrg2Nfinit
quote:
Originally posted by Jake Benson
OMFG why where there even that many Muslims there to begin with? Poor Swedes were too intimidated by frantic baboons to even say anything.
its like showing child molestation documentaries to priests or holy catholics, or a gas chamber video to jews. Obviously you're going to get a reaction. Clearly they take this personally, as any religious person would towards their religion.
Personally i find it comical and funny as i am not very relgious, but at the same time i can sort of see why the people reacted as they did.
Its like teaching or showing evolution to evangelical catholics.
just think about it..
how would you feel if you walked into a presentation about gay jews (only knowing that it was about gay jews) to find out that it was simply a shock film about nazi's rounding up gay jews and executing them.
Obviously you would take some sort of offense to that as it directly relates to you.
This is what is happening here, and i am surprised that you're shocked about it.
Nrg2Nfinit
quote:
Originally posted by Jake Benson
omg your so being like hitler right now, ok
