Senators slam Musk’s smear campaign as Starlink awaits MoI clearance
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(From left to right) Senator Dr Afnan Ullah Khan, SpaceX chief Elon Musk, and Senator Palwasha Khan. — Reuters/Senate of Pakistan Website/File
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After tech tycoon Elon Musk’s social media propaganda linking UK grooming gangs to Pakistanis, senators expressed serious concerns over the potential registration of billionaire-owned satellite internet firm Starlink.
The concerns were raised on Wednesday during a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunications, chaired by Senator Palusha Khan at Parliament House, on the operations of Starlink, the Personal Data Protection Bill and the performance of the Telecom Authority. Important issues including
Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) Chairman briefed the senators that the country’s first National Space Policy was approved in 2023 and relevant rules were framed in 2024, after which the Pakistan Space Activities Regulatory Board (PSARB) The establishment was implemented. Command authority.
It added that any satellite service would require mandatory registration with the relevant authorities to operate in Pakistan before obtaining a license from the PTA.
He detailed that Musk’s Starlink applied for a license in February 2022, which was forwarded to the Home Ministry for security clearance. The telecom regulator chief added that license will be issued to Starlink after registration with the new regulatory board.
He further said that a Chinese company Shanghai Spacecom Satellite Technology is also coming to Pakistan while any firm can apply for a license to enter the country’s satellite communication market.
‘Musk should apologize’
“Elon Musk was involved in a social media campaign against Pakistan,” argued Senator Dr. Afnanullah Khan, urging the relevant authorities to take note of the propaganda the SpaceX chief had spread against the country.
“Why should we allow such people to run business here, who are talking against Pakistanis? […] Or that [Musk] An apology should be made,” added Dr. Afnan.
On this, the PTA chairman clarified that the Ministry of Home Affairs (MOI) has not given clearance to StarLink and explained that Musk’s firm had shared some unofficial documents that indicated service speeds of 100 Mbps. Claimed to be BPS.
He added that Starlink will be a broadband service that can help entrepreneurs in remote areas of the country.
‘immoral content’
After PTA Chairman’s remarks, Senator Anusha Rehman raised serious questions about the Telecom Authority’s strategy of “unethical content and its implementation”. [of regulatory decisions]”
He believed that he had seen global breakthroughs in broadband with internet disruption.
“Now you’re bringing a product. […] A satellite, controlled by an aggressive person like Elon Musk. We will face a lot of unethical and enforcement issues.”
“Security is not the only issue here,” Senator Rehman stressed, asking which regulatory body would address the aforementioned issues and who would monitor its content.
The PTA chairman claimed that Starlink will not run from satellite to satellite but will be operated from a gateway in the country.
He added that the authority had sent its concerns to Musk’s firm and in response it agreed to follow the government’s policies and assured that it would not ignore the prevailing system. The service will also comply with government directives to block certain content, he said.
It may be mentioned here that the Foreign Office of Pakistan had also reacted strongly to the recent spate of “xenophobic remarks” and expressed deep concern over the growing racist and Islamophobic political and media comments against the Pakistani community in the UK. what was
He also called for condemnation of those involved in demonizing such a large and diverse community based on the actions of a few.
During the meeting, Senator Palusha expressed concern over Musk’s repeated claims about grooming gangs in the UK, which mostly include Pakistani nationals, terming the narrative as targeted disinformation against Pakistan, further colluded with Indian institutions. grew up
He questioned whether Starlink had contacted the Pakistani authorities again after applying for a license two years ago, which caused an uproar in the national media.
To this, the PTA chief replied that the matter came up again after Musk replied to an X user that he was awaiting approval from Pakistani authorities to launch Starlink.
The committee unanimously decided to call the already constituted regulatory body for briefing in the next meeting.
It may be mentioned here that Minister of State for IT and Telecommunication Shahza Fatima Khawaja said last month that Pakistan is in touch with Starlink to bring its services to the country.
Musk also confirmed earlier this month that he is awaiting approval from Islamabad to launch his satellite internet service.
The country has been plagued by intermittently slow internet for the past year, with the government constantly blaming submarine cable failures, while reports hint at a possible “firewall” experiment by authorities.
