Parliamentary panel defers passage of cybercrime bill

 JournalismPakistan.com |  Published: 22 May 2015

A parliamentary panel has deferred the passage of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Bill 2015 amid concerns from lawmakers and civil society. There is division among government officials regarding the bill's final draft.

Summary

ISLAMABAD: A parliamentary panel Friday deferred passage of controversial Prevention of Electronic Crimes Bill 2015 for the time being as top government advisers remained divided over its final draft. In a meeting presided over by Captain (Retd) Muhammad Safdar, National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Information Technology discussed concerns of lawmakers and members of civil society on the bill. After hearing the civil society’s reservations on the bill, Safdar said the bill would not be put forward for final approval, which came as a shock to the ruling party leaders. “I cannot approve this bill in its current form as I have not heard suggestions for improvement to the bill,” Safdar said. State Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunication Anusha Rehman said the committee deliberated many times on the issue and discussed the legislation with members of the civil society as well, a claim that was refuted by internet service providers and the members of the public. Civil society representatives urged the government to omit certain controversial clauses in the bill. A separate draft of the bill was also presented before the committee by PTI’s Amjad Ali Khan.