Pakistan Bans Facebook Over Muhammad Cartoons!!!

Authorities in Pakistan today blocked access to Facebook in response to popular outrage over a page on the social networking site that encourages users to post sketches of the Islamic prophet. That page -- titled "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day!" -- calls on Facebook users to upload drawings of Islam's most holy of holy men on Thursday to protest Islamic extremists' threats and violence against past portrayers of Muhammad. (Most recently, for example, arsonists attacked the home of Swedish artist Lars Vilks, who drew a picture of Muhammad's head on a dog's body.) So far, more than 200 images -- most of them certain to offend Muslims -- have been uploaded to the page.

A note on the controversial page, posted by an unknown user, said "Draw Mohammed Day" wasn't set up with the aim of demeaning Muslims or their faith. "We are not trying to slander the average Muslim," it reads. "We simply want to show the extremists that threaten to harm people because of their Mohammed depictions that we're not afraid of them. That they can't take away our right to freedom of speech by trying to scare us into silence."

That disclaimer didn't satisfy the Islamic Lawyers Forum. The Pakistani group made a request to Lahore's High Court, asking it to order the government to block the "blasphemous" site. The court agreed; soon after the verdict was read, The Associated Press reported that members of the lawyers group were seen chanting, "Down with Facebook!" outside the courtroom.

"The court has ordered the government to immediately block Facebook until May 31 because of this blasphemous competition," Azhar Siddique, a representative of the Islamic Lawyers Forum, told Reuters. "The court has also ordered the foreign ministry to investigate why such a competition is being held."

But that ban could easily backfire, by raising awareness -- and anger about -- the page. "By banning this Web page, it will just make people more curious. It's pouring petrol on a small fire that could become a lot bigger," Shakir Husain of Creative Chaos, a Web company based in Karachi, told the Guardian. "You can't police the Internet. The Saudis have tried it, as have other governments, and all have failed."

In a statement, Facebook said, "We strongly believe that Facebook users have the freedom to express their opinions, and we don't typically take down content, groups or pages that speak out against countries, religions, political entities or ideas."

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