The Islamic Emirate cabinet has ordered the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology to block access to Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) game and the Tik Tok app, because, officials said, they lead the younger generations astray.
It was also decided at the cabinet meeting to prevent access to immoral content.
“The cabinet ordered the blocking of access to PUBG and Tik Tok applications, which leads astray the younger generation, and also to prevent the publication of a channel that publishes immoral programs,” said Inamullah Samangani, deputy spokesman for the Islamic Emirate.
However, some Kabul residents, especially young people, have differing views on PUBG and Tik Tok.
“Not only TikTok, but on all social networks we can learn life skills, we can learn languages and we can learn a lot of Islamic subjects, so it cannot be a reasonable reason to block access to these applications because it leads the young astray,” said Alexander Najib.
“Young people can entertain themselves in other ways through drawing, painting and art. My personal opinion is that Tik Tock should be banned,” said Tahir Ayoubi, a resident of Kabul.
But is it useful for teenagers and young people to use the above applications or not?
“Now that schools are closed, digital games or being in cyberspace is necessary for children and adolescents because it leads to the growth of their creativity,” said Tabassum Navid Zafari, a psychologist.
PUBG and Tik Tok have been accessible in the country for more than two years.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan’s Minister of Communication and Information Technology Shahzad Aryubi warned that the ministry will ban Facebook in Afghanistan if it does not follow the newly-established policy of the institution.
Aryubi said the policy is aimed at preventing “misuse” of Facebook by a number of users in Afghanistan.
“We give Facebook six months to follow our policy in its services in Afghanistan, otherwise Facebook will be banned in Afghanistan,” Aryubi said, however, he did not elaborate more about the details of the policy.
He said 20 problems have been recognized in terms of telecom services in the country and that he will urge President Ashraf Ghani to merge Afghanistan’s Telecom Regulatory Authority (ATRA) with his ministry if it cannot resolve the problems.
Kabul residents reacted to the ministry’s move differently. Some said it might be good for making the services better, while some others said it means censoring Facebook and users’ activities.
“If problems decrease in this regard, it will be good. But if the government censors the problems that people share on Facebook, it will not be a good move,” said Wahidullah, a Kabul resident.
In Afghanistan, most of the smartphone users have Facebook accounts and currently millions of people use Facebook services.—Tolonews
