A team was formed on June 21 to investigate the murder of senior journalist Khalil Jibran in the Landi Kotal tehsil. The investigation team is led by District Police Officer Saleem Abbas Kulachi and includes Superintendent of Police (Counter-Terrorism Department) Shaukat Khan, SP (Investigation) Roohul Amin Khan, Inspector Abid Afridi, and Sub-Inspector Sultan Raza Khan. […]
Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF) is alarmed by the brutal murder of journalist Khalil Jibran on June 18 in the Landi Kotal tehsil of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province’s Khyber district. Jibran’s targeted murder, in light of threats previously issued to the journalist, is of grave concern. PPF urges the relevant authorities to ensure that the targeted killing […]
On June 13, Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari assured journalists that the newly introduced defamation law would not impact their work. She clarified that the legislation is aimed at social media influencers who spread misinformation for financial gain. Bukhari also announced the allocation of a one billion rupees budget for healthcare of the journalists’ community. […]
On June 14, anchorperson Imran Riaz Khan was released after a Lahore court discharged him in a new case. The court dismissed the latest charges against him due to lack of evidence, leading to his release by the Lahore police. The anchorperson was arrested on June 11 from the Allama Iqbal International Airport as he […]
The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) High Court on June 13 granted bail to poet and journalist Ahmed Farhad, leading to his release from custody on June 14. Farhad had disappeared from his Islamabad residence on May 15 and reappeared near the AJK-Khyber Pakhtunkhwa border on May 29 when the Islamabad High Court (IHC) heard […]
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has declared journalist and poet Ahmed Farhad a missing person until he reaches home safely and ruled his arrest unlawful, highlighting concerns about the procedures followed by law enforcement agencies. Kashmiri poet Farhad was reported missing from Islamabad on May 15 and later found in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) […]
On June 11, a new petition has been filed in the Lahore High Court challenging the recently enacted defamation law in Punjab. The petition was jointly submitted by the Association of Electronic Media Editors and News Directors (AEMEND) and the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ). Amid heated debate and public outcry, the Acting Governor […]
The Lahore High Court (LHC) on June 11 put a temporary hold on the enforcement of critical sections of the recently enacted Punjab Defamation Act 2024, as legal scrutiny over its constitutionality intensifies. Justice Muhammad Amjad Rafiq presided over the session that temporarily suspended Sections 3, 5, and 8 of the Act pending a detailed […]
The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has voiced strong objections to the newly enacted Punjab Defamation Act 2024, criticizing the Punjab government for a lack of consultation in the drafting process. Although the PPP is not formally part of the coalition government in Punjab, where the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) holds a simple majority, it has […]
On May 24, Islamabad High Court (IHC) allowed the live telecast of all cases related to enforced disappearances. This ruling came during a hearing on the petition for the recovery of the missing Kashmiri poet and journalist, Ahmed Farhad Shah, allegedly detained by an intelligence agency from Islamabad. A petition was filed by Shah’s wife on the […]
On May 20, the Punjab Assembly passed a controversial defamation bill despite strong opposition from journalists and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-backed Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC). The Punjab Defamation Bill,2024, which allows for the establishment of special tribunals to address “fake news,” was passed by a voice vote after the government refused to delay voting despite requests […]
Police and local administration officials sealed shut the gates of the Quetta Press Club on May 18 in a move raising concerns about press freedom. The closure was reportedly an attempt to prevent the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) from holding a seminar at the venue. BYC members arrived at the press club only to find it inaccessible. […]
In the past few weeks, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz-led government at the helm of the federal government and in the Punjab province has demonstrated its lack of regard for the need to protect free expression online, presenting and approving different bills that increase the regulation of free speech online. Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF) is concerned […]
On May 13, the Supreme Court of Pakistan expressed dissatisfaction with the police investigation into the abduction and harassment cases of three journalists, Matiullah Jan, Asad Toor, and Absar Alam. The court ordered the Islamabad police to appoint “competent officers” to conduct a thorough re-investigation. A three-judge bench led by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa […]
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