Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on December 1 said that the information ministry and the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) will take action “on a massive scale” against fake news.

Speaking at a press conference in Lahore, Naqvi said that “since the past few days, past few weeks, 90 per cent news on social media is fake.”

Naqvi said that on social media “one can post any photo, make news as per their wish and post it,” and that this would not be allowed. He added that the state would no longer allow individuals to “declare a living person dead, a dead person alive, or make any allegation they please without evidence.”

He stated that he believes in freedom of expression and the liberty to criticise,  but said these liberties do not extend to manufacturing or circulating false content.

Naqvi drew a distinction between journalists and those spreading fake news on social media. He said: “Journalists are responsible, those who are part of the national media” and work within systems of checks and balances and editorial boards, and that “those who spread fake news are not journalists for us.”

He said that if false news is reported in the mainstream media, a complaint can be filed with the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) and the relevant journalist is answerable to their newsroom supervisors. He contrasted this with social media.

Naqvi said the action is “not against journalists,” but against those spreading fake news.

In response to a question about a regulatory body, Naqvi said one “is already being established.”