It seems Pakistan has a fraught relationship with the word “digital” when it comes to policymaking. On one hand, the government recognizes the transformative potential of modern digital tools to empower Pakistanis, lift countless individuals out of poverty, and integrate them into a modern economy. It promotes initiatives like the development of tech hubs, expanding internet access, distributing free laptops, and enhancing the infrastructure necessary for a thriving digital economy.

Yet, on the other hand, it simultaneously erects firewalls, enforces VPN registries, and degrades the overall quality of internet services under the guise of protection. This contradictory approach is evident in the recently proposed Digital Nation Pakistan Bill 2024. While it offers a lofty vision of a technologically integrated future—where institutions and organisations collaborate seamlessly to ensure efficiency—it is alarmingly vague about the mechanisms to achieve this vision.

The most concrete aspects of the bill seem to be the introduction of a centralized digital identity system for citizens and the creation of monitoring boards to oversee this data. These measures, ostensibly designed to facilitate governance, raise significant concerns. The prospect of extensive data collection combined with sweeping government oversight evokes fears of censorship and misuse rather than excitement for a forward-looking digital evolution. It conjures a dystopian image, particularly in light of Pakistan’s history of law enforcement agencies misusing their authority with impunity and corruption.

Ultimately, the bill appears to be yet another attempt to control “digital terrorism,” a recurring theme in previous legislative efforts that met with widespread backlash due to their authoritarian overtones. Instead of charting a genuine path to digital progress, this bill risks ye more oversight bodies, more officials, more mandatory orders, and more opportunities to control, rather than innovate.