Pakistan Bans Facebook and YouTube in Response to South Park-Related Campaign

It's "Everybody Draw Mohammad Day" everyone! Which means that if you, South Park enthusiasts, believe that the politically incorrect cartoon was unfairly censored by Comedy Central last month, there is a place for you to unite with nearly 100,000 others who share the same sentiment on Facebook. You can submit your own illustrations of the very Muslim prophet that incited death threats from radical Islamic groups and wall post about the merits of free speech -- that is, unless you live in Pakistan.

The Pakistani government banned Facebook after hearing about the campaign, which, ironically, was designed to support freedom of speech. A court in Lahore ordered that the country's Internet service providers block access to Facebook and YouTube until May 31 -- when the panel will decide whether or not to revoke the ban -- because of its "blasphemous material." While the Facebook ban is linked directly to the "Draw Mohammed" campaign, the YouTube censorship was incited to protect its citizens from "derogatory material" in general. In the past week, the Pakistani government has censored over 400 other Internet sites which they claim to host sacrilegious content.

Pakistani Information Technology Secretary Najibullah Malik blamed Facebook for allowing the campaign in the first place, saying on Pakistani television, "They should have regard for sentiments of Muslims, and they should not repeat such displays. They should know that if they are going to do such activities, certainly their business will suffer."

A Facebook representative responded to the claim in a statement to Fox News:

"Facebook is highly self-regulating, and users can and do report content that they find questionable or offensive. Groups that express an opinion on a state, institution, or set of beliefs -- even if that opinion is outrageous or offensive to some -- do not by themselves violate our policies. When a group created to express an opinion devolves into threats or hate speech, we will remove the threatening or hateful comments and may even remove the group itself."

The campaign was first designed by Molly Norris, a cartoonist in Seattle who disapproved of Comedy Central's decision to censor South Park's recent episode "201" that referenced Mohammed in a bear costume. While Norris distanced herself from the campaign, it found its way onto Facebook and has already hosted hundreds of Mohammed caricatures. South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone have not yet commented on the event.

· "Facebook dark in Pakistan amid uproar over Mohammad caricatures

":http://articles.latimes.com/2010/may/19/world/la-fg-pakistan-facebook-20100520 [LAT]

· "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day' Unleashes Facebook Fracas

":http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/05/19/facebook-fracas-breaks-everybody-draw-mohammad-day/?test=latestnews [Fox]