Fighting for Internet Privacy in Pakistan
The government of Pakistan is drafting rules to regulate cybercafes. Under the rules, Pakistan's thousands of unregulated cybercafes will be required to register with the government. Then, starting a month from now, the cafes will have to ask every customer for proof of identity. The idea is to provide a way of tracking terrorists and deny them the use of computers in perfect anonymity. But critics say that the Internet in Pakistan provides a vital new zone of privacy for young people to communicate and to learn things the socially strict society severely limits. Experts also note that terrorists are likely to easily find loopholes in the system, and in any event their communications are not dependent on cybercafes. Most people, however, access the Internet through cybercafes in South Asia and it is their browsing habits that will be recorded. Neighboring India attempted to pass similar rules last year, but that measure failed after widespread public criticism.Cybercafe Crackdown May Trip Up Leering Boys New York Times, August 1, 2002
