The
International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) strongly condemns an attack on a
senior journalist in Pakistan,
Kamal Azfar, whose brother - also a journalist - was murdered last week.
According to
the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ),
an IFJ affiliate, Azfar’s car came
under fire in his hometown of Kohat,
in Pakistan’s
North-West Frontier Province (NWFP),
on February 1.
Azfar did
not suffer serious harm, but his car was badly damaged. The attackers
reportedly fled from the scene.
Azfar’s
brother, Amir Wakil, who worked for a local television station and newspaper, was
murdered in Rawalpindi
on January 24.
Azfar, who
is also a member of the PFUJ’s executive council, subsequently received several
threats warning him against pursuing investigations into the murder. Azfar had
named two individuals as suspects in the murder of his brother, but no arrests
have been made.
“The IFJ fully
endorses the PFUJ’s demand that the authorities fully investigate the murder of
Amir Wakil and the attack on Kamal Azfar,” IFJ Asia-Pacific
Director Jacqueline Park said.
“Pakistan’s
Federal Secretary of the Interior, Syed Kamal Shah, must make good on the
promise that he would investigate Wakil’s murder swiftly and purposively. The
IFJ also urges the authorities to ensure Azfar’s protection.”
The IFJ is
particularly concerned that there be an investigation into the possible links
between these attacks and the professional work of the two individuals as
journalists.
Journalist
and Union Leader Mourned
The IFJ also
joins the PFUJ in mourning the death of Roman Ahsan, a senior journalist and a
former president of the Punjab Union of Journalists, a constituent unit of the
PFUJ.
Roman Ahsan
was a journalist with great professional commitment and a consistent defender
of press freedom.