APNS calls for repealing black amendments to press laws
KARACHI: The Executive Committee of the All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS) expressed its dismay over the inordinate delay by the present government to withdraw the black amendments to the press laws effected by the promulgation of the Emergency on November 3, 2007.
Muhammad Aslam Kazi, Secretary General APNS, has stated that the Executive Committee at its meeting chaired by its President Hameed Haroon on March 8 in Islamabad considered the government-press relations and noted with concern that black amendments to the press laws had not yet been withdrawn. The committee members authorised the president to take suitable measures to stress on the interim government to unconditionally repeal the amendments as assured by the interim Information Minister Nisar Memon.
In another resolution, the APNS strongly condemned the threats from militant outfits to the publishers and journalists of Balochistan and the assassination of Dr Chishti Mujahid as a consequence. It urged the Balochistan government to take immediate measures to provide appropriate security to the media-men in the province. The committee considered the draft Annual Report of the Society for the year 2007-08 as well as annual accounts for the year 2007. The members adopted the report and appreciated the Secretary General and the Secretariat for efficiently handling the issues and problems of member publications during the year. It decided to hold Annual General Council Meeting for the year 2008 on Monday, March 31, 2008 in Karachi.
Aslam Kazi said the members thoroughly considered the problems faced by member publications, expressed concern over the unprecedented increase in the prices of newsprint in the international and local markets, which has badly affected the cost of newspapers. The committee urged the government to exempt newspaper industry from the levy of GST and other duties on the import of newsprint, so that the newspapers might sustain their circulations and bear the increase in costs.
The committee approved cover price formula for newspapers as suggested by the Sindh Provincial Committee and decided to refer the matter to a sub-committee under Arif Nizami, consisting of Mujeeb-ur-Rehman Shami, Jamil Ather, Imtinan Shahid, Ilyas Shakir, Pir Sufaid Shah Hamdard and Sajjad Hussain Shah for necessary action and consultation with the Akhbar Farosh Federation.
The Executive Committee also urged the Pakistan Post authorities to withdraw the arbitrary increase in the postal charges of VPP that has enormously damaged the distribution system of magazines in the country, affecting readers with enormous increase in postal charges.
The members of the committee decided to grant accreditation to M/s Orient Communications (Pvt) Ltd, M/s Midas International (Pvt) Ltd, Karachi and M/s Midas Advertising (Pvt) Ltd, Islamabad. They also approved registration of M/s Orientedge (Pvt) Ltd, Karachi and M/s Adcom Media (Pvt) Ltd, Karachi as Media Buying Houses, confirmed accreditation of M/s Media Pulse (Pvt) Ltd, Karachi and approved restructuring of M/s Orient Advertising (Pvt) Ltd. and M/s GS Associates, Karachi.
The committee approved associate membership of Daily Today’s Muslim, Peshawar, and Monthly Jehangir’s World Times, Lahore.
The meeting was attended by the following: Hameed Haroon, President APNS, Imtinan Shahid, Vice President, Muhammad Aslam Kazi, Secretary General, Umer Mujib Shami, Finance Secretary, Anwar Farooqui (D/Aghaz), Mumtaz A Tahir (D/Aftab), Mehtab A Khan (D/Ausaf), Waseem Ahmed (Daily Awam, Quetta), Dr Jabbar Khattak (Daily Awami Awaz), Rehmat Ali Raazi (W/Azm), Arshad A Zuberi (D/Business Recorder), Abdul Rashid Ghazi (D/Business Report), Siddiq Baluch (D/Balochistan Express), Syed Faseih Iqbal (D/Balochistan Times), Najamuddin Sheikh (D/Deyanat), Ms Qudsia K Khan (D/Financial Post), Kazi Asad Abid (D/Ibrat), Amjad Ali (D/Jang), Sharif Farooq (D/Jihad), Syed Sajjad Hussain Shah (D/Kainat), Javed Mehr Shamsi (D/Kaleem), Inquilab Matri (D/Millat Gujrati), Syed Sajjad Bokhari (D/Musawat), Mushtaq Ahmed Qureshi (M/Naey Ufaq), Ilyas Shakir (D/Qaumi Akhbar), Khushnood Ali Khan (D/Sahafat), Khalid Mahmood Shah (M/Shahrag-e-Pakistan), Adnan Malik (W/Takbeer), Altaf Hasan Qureshi (M/Urdu Digest) and Pir Sufaid Shah Hamdard
(D/Wahdat). Mujeeb-ur-Rehman Shami and Masood Hamid attended as special invitees.
Source: The News
Date:3/12/2008
” 
” 
” 
” 
