Twitter Warns Michelle Malkin for Violating Pakistan’s Sharia Law on Platform

The notice which Malkin received from Twitter, declared, “We are writing to inform you that Twitter has received official correspondence regarding your Twitter account, @michellemalkin. The correspondence claims that the following content is in violation of Pakistan law.”

“Twitter has not taken any action on the reported content at this time. We are only writing to inform you that content posted to your account has been mentioned in a complaint,” the notice continued. “This notice is not legal advice. You may wish to consult legal counsel about this matter.”

Twitter Warns Michelle Malkin for Violating Pakistan’s Sharia Law on Platform

I know there are some shady shenanigans going on with certain social media platforms *cough* Facebook YouTube *cough* throttling or even banning conservative voices, but this is truly bizarre. And Malkin isn't the only one; according to the article:

Twitter has been warning users from around the world, including conservative writer and commentator Michelle Malkin, that their posts on the platform violate Pakistan’s Sharia law, and that they “may wish to consult legal counsel.” Conservative commentator Michelle Malkin received Twitter’s Sharia notice, as well as Muslim reformist Imam Mohamad Tawhidi, Islam critic Pamela Geller, human rights activist Ensaf Haidar, and FrontPage Magazine managing editor Jamie Glazov.

What the hell? Why are non-Pakistanis being notified that they're violating Pakistani law? Are people going to start getting warnings from all over the world now? Is this going to be the new excuse for censoring-- "Well, it violates X law in Timbuktu, so we're going to have to remove your tweet/de-monetize your video/take down your livestream/etc."?

---Yes, I know it doesn't say any of those things are actually happening, before the usual crowd points it out. Please don't bother.---

But seriously. What is up with this? And why Pakistan, of all places? Thoughts?

what a strange thing to be notified about. and it is legal advice, given that they advised that she may wish to consult a lawyer.

Internet is global.
Freedom of speech on the internet was global until fairly recently.

With major corporations limiting freedom of speech on their rightfully owned platforms, we're seeing the elimination of free speech basically in real time.

They started with legal action against people on Facebook, obviously- saying dumb # on a platform with your name and face right there... But it's just going to keep getting harder and harder to speak your mind online.

CTR never went away.

a reply to: riiver

When hats and cartoons trigger warnings, bannings and blood, you know you're over the target.

If anything, the platform should be liable - vicariously... That's how the law works is it not? At least it does in the UK on anything other than the internet.

Why on Earth 'Twitter' should show any respect at all to 'Sharia Law' which is nonsensical stone age rubbish is beyond me.

I am almost certain (and this is backed up by a quick Google) that the law system of Pakistan is based upon that of England, or 'British India'. Has something changed?

You can label this 'hate speech' but any system which advocates multiple stone age and barbaric punishments for homosexuality etc etc (could go on and on) should have no place in our modern civilised world.

Edit Upon rereading the OP quote there is no mention of Sharia law...Only Pakistan law. What gives... Can someone educate me here ?

a reply to: and14263

Last week, the little birdies in Twitter’s legal department notified me that one of my tweets from 2015 is ‘in violation of Pakistan law,'” proclaimed Malkin in a blog post. “My innocuous tweet featured a compilation image of the 12 Muhammad cartoons published by Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten in 2005. It also linked to my Jan. 8, 2015, syndicated column on the Charlie Hebdo jihad massacre in Paris. There’s no hate, violence, profanity or pornography, just harmless drawings and peacefully expressed opinions about the Western media’s futile attempts to appease the unappeasable enforcers of sharia law, which bans all insults of Islam

She posted drawings of Mohammed and criticized Sharia law.
Back in 2015.

Meanwhile post a picture of a bible in the toilet and it will get retweeted a million times.

a reply to: DAVID64

So Sharia runs alongside/above sensible law?

A small point. The Twitter narrative does not mention Sharia law. Indeed, Pakistan's legal system is not Sharia. Could it be that Brietbart (the OPs source) is being a little disingenuous with the actuality? Surely not, eh?

a reply to: paraphi

This is what I was thinking. Swaying towards the old Fake News?

originally posted by: neo96
Meanwhile post a picture of a bible in the toilet and it will get retweeted a million times.

Prove it.

a reply to: Jefferton

Don't have to.

WEIRD!

They should be propping her up for being an Establishment stooge.

Pakistan
Until 1978 Islamic law was largely restricted to personal status issues. Zia ul Haq introduced Sharia courts and made far reaching changes in the criminal justice system.[138] Articles 203a to 203j of the constitution establish a sharia court with the power to judge any law or government actions to be against Islam, and to review court cases for adherence to Islamic law.

The penal code includes elements of sharia.[139] Under article 5, section 2 of the Ordinance No. VII of 1979, whoever is guilty of zina, "if he or she is a muhsan, be stoned to death at a public place; or if he or she is not a muhsan, be punished, at a public place, with whipping numbering one hundred stripes".[140] Under a 2006 law, rape cases can be heard under civil as well as Islamic law.[141]

Pakistan uses large elements of Shari'a law in its legal code, so the truth is not necessarily being stretched here.

a reply to: ketsuko

Thanks for the information.

Definitely not fake news then (or propaganda as the sensible people used to call it before they got dumbed down).

It's beyond me how any human being can think that Sharia law is just. I understand morals, ethics, crime and punishment is not a subject one can master in a day, and philosophically can fairly stretch in many directions. But Sharia just does not seem logical, sensible or fair, no matter how much I stretch my imagination.

Why great swathes of people not only follow it but hold it in great respect I just cannot understand. Well, I think I can understand but like I say, it's beyond the realms of all logic.

a reply to: and14263

I would say that Twitter is most likely searching for convenient excuses to deplatform or intimidate. Pakistan has no jurisdiction over Americans not in Pakistan.

So....the gist of what i'm getting out of this thread is...we should have an ATS Muhammad drawing contest then all get Twitter accounts and post them?

What it looks like to me is that someone in Pakistan filed a legal complaint. That complaint made it's way to Twitter HQ. Twitter notified the user the complaint is targeting to give them a heads up that someone may be trying to take legal action against them. It does not appear to me that Twitter supports the complaint, which is probably why they did not take any action at all, other than notifying the user. Also, because the complaint came from Pakistan and the user is not in Pakistan and did not break any of their own local laws, that I am aware of, then nothing should come of it. It seems like Twitter was actually just being the nice guys here. A lawyer stepped to them, they told the user that the lawyers are targeting that some lawyers may be interested in coming after them. That's all. Just making sure the user is aware so they can get on top of it, rather than be surprised.

Why does a modern tech platofrm give a rat's ass what a third world #hole stuck somewhere between the stone age and the industrial revolution thinks about their civilized western users' contributions? Screw Pakistan, screw Sharia (or Pakistan's laws based on Sharia loosely or otherwise), and frankly screw anyone so tenuously clinging to a religion that a perceived insult of their cult leader or lower case g god must be met with immediate threats and action.

originally posted by: paraphi
A small point. The Twitter narrative does not mention Sharia law. Indeed, Pakistan's legal system is not Sharia. Could it be that Brietbart (the OPs source) is being a little disingenuous with the actuality? Surely not, eh?

It's their headline, yeah. But my point was less to do with whether the sharia part is accurate than with the idea of users in America, and American citizens, being warned that they're breaking a foreign law when posting as Americans on an American platform. (It was late, I was tired, and I guess I didn't make that clear.) I find that disturbing. Imagine how many laws world-wide there are to be invoked if we're going to play that game.