‘Strict actions will be taken against all those involved in the dissemination of the sensitive and classified information, especially those marked secret on social media platforms.’ The warning has been issued by the Minister of Defence, Khawaja Asif.
It is to be noted that, Minister Asif, took it to his official Twitter handle to share the announcement. In his message, the Minister of Defence, said that, “The Federal Government has taken strict notice of the unauthorized dissemination of sensitive and classified information, particularly, the open display of classified documents (especially those marked secret) on social media platforms.”
وفاقی حکومت نے حساس اور خفیہ معلومات کی غیر مجاز تشہیر، خاص طور پر، سوشل میڈیا پلیٹ فارمز پر خفیہ دستاویزات (خصوصا جن دستاویزات پہ سیکرٹ بھی لکھا ھو )کی کھلے عام نمائش کا سخت نوٹس لیا ہے۔ اس طرح کی معلومات کا پھیلاؤ پاکستان کے سٹریٹجک اور اقتصادی مفادات کو زک پہنچانے کے علاوہ…
— Khawaja M. Asif (@KhawajaMAsif) May 13, 2024
“The spread of such information can seriously harm Pakistan’s relations with its friends and brotherly countries, besides harming Pakistan’s strategic and economic interests. In this context, the federal government has decided to register cases under the Official Secrets Act 2023 against all those persons who are directly or indirectly involved in the disclosure or dissemination of secret information or documents. The punishment for this crime is two years imprisonment and fine,” says Minister Asif.
Whereas, there has been almost zero to no clear distinction in the bureaucracy on what information can be seen as “Secret.” While elaborating further on this, Minister Khawaja Asif, said that, “Laws are there to be used sparingly and equitably, not to serve the political objectives.”
Moreover, the official secrets act 2023, specifies the activities that constitute offenses under the act, like unauthorized access to the restricted areas, documents or information systems. It also criminalizes activities like drawing sketches or notes that could aid enemy, or gaining unauthorized electronic or physical access to the sensitive locations or data.
Notably, the information about this has gained a lot of heat from people, questioning the security system of the government. People are not just upset over this matter. But they are also requesting the government to enact strict data protection laws in country instead of controlling the flow of information.