ISLAMABAD: Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar on Thursday said the government was focusing on forming a separate authority to safeguard the digital rights of people and counter propaganda and rumours on social media.

Speaking at a press conference, the minister said a campaign by a section of media, intelligentsia and academia regarding online harassment and fake news was witnessed on social media recently.

“There must be an end to harassment, including online,” he said and called for a specific authority to address the issue of online harassment as at present there was no law to protect the digital rights of consumers.

He said it was necessary to create awareness among the general public about their digital rights.

PM’s Saudi visit

Calling the recent visit of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to Saudi Arabia “highly successful”, the minister said historic and major developments will take place within the next few months because of the visit.

The information minister said that the Saudi ministers expressed their commitment to work with Pakistan regarding bilateral cooperation and invest­­ment.

“Within a short span of just one month, the prime minister held two meetings with the Saudi crown prince, which is of historic significance for the two brotherly countries.”

Published in Dawn, May 3rd, 2024