The Lahore High Court (LHC) here on Friday dismissed a petition seeking ban on access to website WikiLeaks in Pakistan, declaring it against fundamental right of people to access information. The court passed this order after hearing arguments of petitioner Advocate Arif Gondal.
The petitioner pleaded that leakage of sensitive secret cables about Pakistan, Muslim and western countries of the world through WikiLeaks site, is a conspiracy to create conflicts among Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and other Muslim and Western countries. The petitioner said disclosures of the secret information by Wikileaks site is aimed at destroying peace in Pakistan and defaming important personalities and national institutions including Pakistan Army.
The court dismissed the petition observing the secret documents being leaked by WikiLeaks site are being accessed in over 170 countries of the world and it should also not be blocked in Pakistan. The court observed "The secret information may cause trouble for some personalities in the Pakistan but it will be good for growth of the nation in the long run. We, as a nation, should have courage to tolerate and digest criticism and live with it," the court added.
The petition, which was dismissed at the state of preliminary hearing, submitted that Pakistan had good bilateral relations with a number of countries of the world, the leakage of secret cables by WikiLeaks would disturb the bilateral relations of Pakistan with other countries, particularly the Saudi Arabia.