Foreign media alive to acts against Jang Group, Geo | Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF)

Pakistan Press Foundation

Foreign media alive to acts against Jang Group, Geo

RAWALPINDI: Foreign TV channels and newspapers have also reported the blocking of the transmission of Geo TV and burning of the copies of The News and the Daily Jang.

The Times of India reported that a TV channel’s (Geo TV) broadcast was blocked and copies of at least two newspapers (The News and the Daily Jang) were burnt in different parts of Pakistan after they reported a ‘shoe attack’ on President Zardari.

The Arab News said in its news report captioned ‘Geo TV blocked after airing shoe-throwing at Zardari in the United Kingdom’ that PakistanÂ’s popular Geo News channel was blocked overnight in various parts of the country after it aired news regarding hurling of shoe at President Asif Ali Zardari during his party address in Birmingham.

“Minutes after the story of the shoe-throwing at Zardari was aired, authorities in all main cities blocked Geo TV and on Sunday morning set ablaze offices of Geo, the Jang and The News dailies,” it added.

Aaj Tak, an Indian TV channel, in its report headlined ‘Geo TV blocked over ‘Shoe’ show’, appearing on its website, reported that the Pakistan government on Sunday night cracked down on the leading independent news channel, Geo TV, across Pakistan for showing an angry Pakistani hurling shoes at President Asif Ali Zardari. It said the same channel had been target of the government’s ire during General (retd) Pervez Musharraf’s regime.

Deccan Herald, an Indian English daily, said in its news report that newspaper vendors had been robbed of copies of the daily Jang and The News on the directions of the PPP.

The Zeenews in its report said the transmission of Geo News was blocked overnight in various parts of Pakistan after the channel aired reports regarding hurling of shoes at President Zardari during his party address in Birmingham.

According to reports, some Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leaders and government officials had issued threats and warnings to cable operators across country against continuation of Geo News transmission, it added.

Oneindia and newkerala.com also reported the hostile acts against the Jang Group and Geo in their news reports captioned as ‘Pak’s Geo News blocked over reports of shoe hurling at Zardari’.

Outlookindia.com, an Indian English magazine, commented on the visit of President Zardari in its report ‘Shoes and Shouts Mark End of Zardari’s UK Visit’. It also writes about the hostile actions against the Jang Group and Geo as: ‘The Jang group also claimed that Geo News channel was blocked out in parts of the country for airing the news of the man ‘hurling shoes’ at the President. It also claimed that the group’s English and Urdu newspapers were stolen by unidentified persons early this morning and burnt.

Malaysia Sun also reported the burning of copies of the daily Jang and The News, and the blocking of transmission of Geo TV.

News24online, an India media outlet, writes: ‘The Pakistani government has been known for its dictatorship behaviour and image for so many years. And it has given a fresh example of it by blocking the broadcasting of a news channel (Geo TV) and burning newspaper copies of at least two newspapers (The News and the Daily Jang) in different parts of Pakistan.

The incident took place after the channel and the newspapers reported a ‘shoe attack’ on President Asif Ali Zardari during an address in Birmingham, the channel said on Sunday.

Expressbuzz reported that the people of Pakistan thought that Geo and Jang Group were being penalised for revealing facts and speaking the truth.
Source: The News
Date:8/10/2010