Pakistan Media Urged To Stand Strong and Unified for Elections

 The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) extends its full support and solidarity to the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), an IFJ affiliate, and all journalists in Pakistan who continue to face great dangers as they report on the country’s national elections on February 18.

The IFJ calls on the interim government, national officials and local authorities to guarantee journalists are not obstructed in preparing news reports before, during and after the election.

Journalists in Pakistan are operating under great pressure in a tense political climate, following President Pervez Musharraf’s imposition of temporary emergency rule on November 3, 2007, and a continuing clampdown on the media. Measures to ban live coverage of election reporting, implemented through the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA), have sought to gag the media as the country’s political crisis has worsened. The interim Information Minister, Nisar Memon, was reported earlier this month to have warned broadcasters to abide by PEMRA’s censorious code of conduct or risk being taken off air.

While the IFJ has welcomed the return of GEO TV to air on January 21, serious concerns remain for the safety and protection of journalists working on the ground to cover the election build-up, as violent attacks on political parties and opponents are making it extremely dangerous for journalists and media workers covering the election. Most recently, five journalists were among nine people seriously injured in a bomb blast outside the office of independent electoral candidate Aslam Bizenjo in the Kuzdar district of Balochistan on February 12.

Ten journalists were arrested in Sindh province on December 27 under anti-terrorism and riot laws, accused of reporting on events related to the assassination of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto on December 27. The PFUJ reports that 34 cases have been registered against journalists in the province’s interior since December 27. Of these, 19 journalists work for Kawish Television Network (KTN), the most watched private Sindhi language channel, and the Sindhi newspaper Daily Kawish.
 
The IFJ joins the PFUJ in calling on all media owners to provide appropriate protection for their journalists, including safety equipment, and to ensure that journalists’ safety is a priority. The IFJ encourages all journalists to approach the elections with a strong and unified defence of the right to a free media and free expression on the understanding that the right to know should not be taken away from the people of Pakistan.

“The liberty and safety of journalists and editorial independence are principles of press freedom that we, as journalists and guardians of free expression, hold as sacrosanct and non-negotiable,” said IFJ Asia-Pacific Director Jacqueline Park. “Press freedom is a crucial element of democracy. The IFJ will be watching Pakistan’s national elections closely with the expectation that the safety of journalists will be protected and the rights of the media to inform the people of Pakistan will be restored.”

For further information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific on +612 9333 0919

The IFJ represents over 600,000 journalists in 120 countries