Google is circumventing the ban imposed by Pakistan by creating a local version of YouTube.
Pakistan said on Monday it had lifted a three-year ban on YouTube after the Google-owned video-sharing website launched a local version that allows the government to remove material it deems offensive.
Readers will recall that Pakistan banned access to the site in question in September 2012 after the release of an anti-Islam film titled “Innocence of Muslims,” which was uploaded to the site, sparking violent protests in major cities in the Muslim country of 190 million people.
After nearly three years, Google has managed to circumvent the ban by creating a translated version of YouTube just for Pakistan. Pakistan’s top internet watchdog, the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology, said in a statement that under the new version, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority can request access to material it deems offensive so that it can be blocked.
"Regarding the recommendation of the PTA, the Government of Pakistan has allowed access to the version of YouTube which was recently launched in the country for internet users in Pakistan," the ministry said.
“Google provides an online process through which requests to block access to illegal material can be submitted directly from the PTA to Google, and Google/YouTube will promptly and appropriately restrict access to such illegal material for users within Pakistan.”
