Juxtaposing Law, Media and Human Rights: Role of Social Media in Promoting Human Rights in Pakistan Case Study of Legal Reforms and Digital Activism

Abstract

This research paper analyzes the potential role of social media as a tool for the promotion of human rights in Pakistan, specifically considering legal reforms and digital activism. The background of this study rests on the growing convergence of digital platforms with civil liberties, legal literacy, and advocacy movements. This study is founded on two objectives, revolves around two research questions, and tests two hypotheses concerning the extent of the reach and impact of social media as a tool in the promotion of human rights in Pakistan. To draw conclusions about the research questions, this study ultimately takes a quantitative approach. The study uses the survey method for data collection. A structured questionnaire is distributed to a sample of 175 participants from a variety of peoples, including social media activists, lawyers, human rights activists, victims, lawmakers/parliamentarians. The data is collected, and then subjected to analysis and depicted using visualizations to demonstrate the patterns of responses and frequency distribution. The study explores the ability of social media to be a means of providing and preserving human rights advocacy in Pakistan by strengthening the voices of those traditionally marginalized in society, generating public awareness and sentiment for marginalized communities, and pressuring lawmakers to amend problematic laws. Furthermore, the study provides evidence that digital media is often a sufficient means of awareness, largely promoting dialogues about the issues explored in this study, and documenting the real time violations of human rights and civil liberties. Overall, the research indicates that digital activism is a nascent social force that will continue to shape human rights discourse in Pakistan. While there are challenges in online spaces, like online censorship, misinformation and digital illiteracy, the recommendations recognize that there are some more sustainable legal protections for digital activists in Pakistan, more solid regulatory regimes, collaborative civil society and policy makers for realizing social media for more robust human rights advocacy.  

Keywords: Social Media, Human Rights, Legal Reforms, Digital Activism