Ed. note: Our research affiliate Huma Yusuf is in Karachi covering the political protests in Pakistan, and she is blogging about Pakistanis' uses of citizen journalism on The Dawn Blog, from which we'll quote as Huma posts more.

Pakistan, a developing nation with 17 million internet users in a population of over 150 million people, seems like an unlikely place for internet activism to thrive. But ongoing political turmoil (and a propensity for arbitrary arrests) has made this South Asian country one of the most politically active nations online.

A PDF of this report is available for download here.

Abstract

Arguments about digital technology, civic engagement, and collective action are often framed in the context of political participation in developed nations, particularly, the United States. Many have concluded that the availability of digital technologies and new media platforms facilitates democratic practices and participatory behavior. Whether this is equally true of the developing world remains to be critically examined.

Pakistan is a developing nation where digitally networked technologies and new media platforms are emerging, and where a struggle to establish democratic norms amidst authoritarian superstructures is underway. Between March 2007 and February 2008, a period referred to colloquially as the ‘Pakistan Emergency,’ a state of emergency was imposed, the constitution suspended, a popular politician assassinated, media censorship enforced, and general elections conducted.

Nilaja Sun’s one-woman play “No Child,” currently being staged at the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, is a phenomenal mix of storytelling, journalism, activism, and civic engagement. The 70-minute performance isn’t bogged down by intricate sets, costume changes, or dazzling lighting design. Instead, Sun uses three chairs, a broom, and her ability to embody and humorously animate a dozen characters to start a meaningful conversation about education reform. The fact that it is as tech-free as a theater performance can get without leaving the audience literally sitting in the dark should serve as a lesson for everyone aiming to use new technologies to facilitate social justice.

Much can be said about Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf’s decision to declare a state of emergency in my home country. In this post, I will set aside political commentary and restrict my comments here to the role that news media and new media are playing in the national crisis.

On Saturday, November 3, soon after proclaiming emergency rule in a televised address, Musharraf demanded that all cable operators stop beaming the broadcasts of all local and foreign new channels, except those of the state-owned Pakistan Television. Nearly 30 channels were promptly taken off the air. On Sunday, policemen raided the Islamabad offices of Aaj TV, a private news channel, and attempted to confiscate the channel’s equipment.

This nationwide broadcasting blackout was accompanied by sporadic efforts to cut telephone lines and jam cell phone networks, even though the telecommunications infrastructure in Pakistan is privately owned. According to VOA News, the telephone lines of Pakistan’s main independent news channel Geo TV were cut.

Here at the Center for Future Civic Media, we try to be careful not to be technological determinists when brainstorming ideas for new technologies that can foster civic engagement. Most students remain wary of thinking that a well-designed device will promote participation, no matter what. Instead, our discussions emphasize the need to keep the social mores and everyday practices of a community in mind, so that the tools we design are culturally sensitive, and thus more likely to be deployed.

Recently, I had the opportunity to speak to Revi Sterling, a Microsoft Research Fellow who designed Advancement through Interactive Radio (AIR), a Digital Inclusion initiative of the University of Colorado at Boulder. Sterling’s work serves as a good model of a project that has been tailored to accommodate for cultural practices and on-the-ground realities in her test community in Southeast Kenya.

For the past few weeks, students involved with C4FCM have been hopping between meetings, brainstorming ideas for new technologies and applications for existing technologies that can promote civic engagement and community building. A laundry list of desirable traits for new technologies with civic potential is emerging. New technologies deployed within a community should be inexpensive, scalable, and easily accessible on the part of the end user. A technology should not require the implementation of an extensive infrastructure, and should aim to make use of existing technologies with which members of most communities are already familiar. Some students are in favor of internal networking technologies that defy the logic of centralization and are not reliant on external networks or communications infrastructure. In addition, a technology should be adaptable so that different communities can tailor it to their specific needs. As a bonus, the technology should help to bridge the digital divide and should be suitable for use by those who are semi-literate or illiterate.