Another national policy has come for a serious debate in Nepal parliament.<\/p>\n
The country\u2019s prime opposition party Nepali Congress has raised deep concerns about the Information Technology (IT) bill registered in the Parliament.<\/p>\n
Citing that as \u2018restriction of the freedom of expression\u2019, NC president and ex-prime minister Sher Bahadur Deuba said the ruling government is trying to impose restrictions on press freedom by regulating social media.<\/p>\n
Deuba\u2019s remarks are coming after the government\u2019s decision to regulate social media to control its misuse by public.<\/p>\n
As per the proposed rule, the accused found of misusing social media by any means of insulting people or any other activity will be subjected to NPR 1.5 million fine and 5-year imprisonment.<\/p>\n
“The government has tried to impose press censorship in the name of regulating Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and online news portals,” read Deuba\u2019s<\/span> statements.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
The former PM said the opposition parties deeply condemn this decision by the Communist government.<\/p>\n
Not just the opposition parties, the government\u2019s decision has also received wide opposition from various local and international media groups and associations.<\/p>\n
One of the local news portals called on Nepali citizens to be cautious on the new IT Bill, stating that the Bill might obstruct freedom of expression and other fundamental rights.<\/p>\n
The government\u2019s decision gains significance in view of the facts that show growing social media crimes globally and in Nepal too.<\/p>\n
Some Popular Instances…<\/h4>\n
Very recently, we have seen the world\u2019s renowned mobile app \u2018TikTok\u2019<\/a> charged high penalty for Children Policy Violation. The Federation of Trade Commission (FTC) charged the management of the video-sharing app with USD 5.7 million penalty.<\/p>\n