[Current Affairs] March 12, 2021 Top Pakistan Current Affairs for Entry Test Preparation

2. Disinformation campaign against Aurat March

What’s going on? A dangerous disinformation campaign against the 2021 Aurat March (i.e. women’s march) emerged on social media. According to a post on Aurat March Karachi’s official Twitter page, they are facing “heinous allegations” because of a doctored video. Some unidentified person or group edited the subtitles in a video of Aurat March participants chanting slogans, and replaced the original caption with content that is considered “blasphemous” or “anti-Islam.”

The details: Aurat March Karachi posted a video of participants chanting their original slogan to prove that another video circulating online has fake subtitles. The Express Tribune also confirmed that Aurat March footage with allegedly “blasphemous” subtitles is fake. Activist and lawyer, Jibran Nasir, gave a word-by-word breakdown of the edited subtitles to further prove how they are different from the slogan chants in the original video.

Tell me more: Aurat March Karachi accused two journalists of spreading “fake and heinous allegations.” Journalists Ovais Mangalwala and Ansar Abbasi commented on the Aurat March video that had fake subtitles, without confirming its authenticity. However, Aurat March gave a thumbs up to journalist, Shahzeb Khanzada, for reporting on the false allegations against the Aurat March.

• Mangalwala’s response: He is an Anchor/TV host at Hum News. He seemed apologetic when he learned the video was fake, and clarified that no one in the video was chanting blasphemous slogans.

• Abbasi’s response: He is an Editor at The News. He initially asked the govt to investigate this “very dangerous content about the women’s march,” arrest those who are responsible if it’s true, and ban the women’s march. After it was confirmed that the video had fake subtitles, Abbasi still said he’s against the Aurat March, and thinks it should be banned. However, he said if the content is fake, whoever was involved in writing and circulating that doctored content should be penalized.

Looking ahead: Digital rights activist Nighat Dad slammed Twitter for not doing enough to tackle misinformation, abuse, or online violence against Pakistani women. Science and Technology Minister, Fawad Chaudhry, said whoever edited the video committed a “grave offence,” and the Federal Investigation Agency should track down whoever is responsible.

The bottom line: Aurat March Karachi claimed that people who want to weaken the feminist movement and silence marginalized voices are spreading misinformation. Even unproven blasphemy accusations in Pakistan can trigger mob violence and extrajudicial killings. That’s why it’s alarming that some journalists with large platforms shared or commented on the doctored video without fact checking it.