WHEN I first started working as a journalist, my senior colleagues and field-hardened editors introduced me to the concept of the release valve. I was often surprised that we were able to investigate a sensitive issue or publish strong criticism of the state, those being the years of the Musharraf dictatorship, and Pakistan not exactly known for its press freedom.

The media persists, I was told, because Pakistan`s various authoritarian and hybrid regimes understand the need for a roiling, simmering society to let off steam. The press, albeit confined within a matrix of red lines, enabled the public to feel heard, warned the generals of the tenor of public sentiment, and allowed everyone to ignore authoritarian truths beneath the veneer of democratic norms. Which Pakistani leader, whether in uniform, a suit or sherwani, while touring global capitals has not pointed to Pakistan`s supposedly vibrant press as proof of their democratic credentials? The hasty passage of the Peca Amendment Act, 2025, (likely accelerated by the looming anniversary of the Feb 8 elections) confirms that this savvy if cynical approach to press freedom, and free speech more broadly, is over. The state`s desire now is for complete, unapologetic control.

Draconian is not a suitably dire adjective to describe the amendment. With its passage, we have all been recast as `digital terrorists`. Anything that critiques the `ideology of Pakistan` or state institutions will now be deemed fake news. Blocking powers extend from specific content to partial or whole blocks of online platforms. And there is little judicial recourse for those falling foul of the law a new regulatory authority will come equipped with its own investigation agency and tribunals, restricting independent judgements. Readers should consider this the definition of social media is being broadened from platforms such as X to private messaging channels.

Even WhatsApp may be threatened.

In the context of Pakistani free speech, this amendment is the boiling water that the proverbial frog did not feel coming. The slow march to digital control has been underway since the mid-2000s. Earlier, our free expression rights were stripped under the guise of protecting us from blasphemy and pornography; later, they were curtailed in the name of national security. Now, the ostensible target is disinformation, but the sweeping amendments are explicitly aimed at silencing any criticism of the state, political dissent or attempts at holding state institutions to account. The shadowy InterMinisterial Committee for the Evaluation of Websites that used to block websites inthe absence of any legal framework has now metastasised into the Social Media Regulation and Protection Authority the prognosis for free speech is gloomy.

These harsh measures will be counterproductive. Attempts to suppress dissent rarely quash critical views; they validate and intensify them, and drive them underground. Debates that cannot be held in the public sphere will move offline, deeper into the dark web. Discourse that must be tempered due to broadcast or social media moderation requirements will become more radicalised and inflammatory.

Peca 2016 has been wielded against hundreds who criticised military excesses in Balochistan and KP, and more recently against PTI supporters. Censorship in the name of cybercrime has not quelled these ethno-nationalist or political movements; if anything, it has spurred them on, including in increasingly radical directions.

Then there`s the economy to consider.

Internet shutdowns, including partial or full social media bans and internet throt-tling, cost the global economy billions each year. According to a report by the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, internet shutdowns cost Pakistan between $892 million and $1.6billion in 2024 (the number varies based on the calculation methodology used). By the latter estimate, Pakistan last year experienced the highest economic losses in the world due to internet crackdowns.

And this will not be the worst of it. In the 21st century, digital rights are synonymous with human rights. Economic privileges such as Pakistan`s preferential access to EU markets under the GSP-Plus scheme, due for renewal in 2027, could be jeopardised on the basis of the Peca Amendment (along with other excesses such as the 26th Amendment and military trials for civilians).

Many foreign investors will be deterred for fear of having to localise data or be dragged into the quagmire of citizen surveillance and digital rights violations. Is this cost worth it? The state will present the amendments as protection against the ravages of social media and disinformation. But make no mistake, this is about censorship and control, and we won`t be able to say as much. • The wúter is a political and integúty úsk analyst.

X: @humayusuf