PTA demands YouTube remove 'indecent' content, hate speech

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority on Thursday demanded YouTube remove a variety of content, including "indecent" material and "hate speech".

In a statement issued late evening, the PTA said it had asked the video-sharing platform "to immediately block vulgar, indecent, immoral, nude and hate speech content for viewing in Pakistan".

In a series of posts on Twitter, the PTA said its decision was based on "the extremely negative effects of indecent/immoral/nude content available on YouTube and to prevent repugnant discord due to the presence of hate speech and sectarian material".

The state-run regulatory body said YouTube must ensure that "objectionable content" is immediately blocked and that it is not used for "disseminating such content".

The PTA further announced that the Google-owned service was "directed to put in place an effective content monitoring and moderation mechanism so that the unlawful material is detected/deleted and not accessible within Pakistan".